By Brian Hefty

You’ve likely heard of BalanceBean (HPPD trait), Enlist (2,4-D trait), and Roundup Ready 2 Xtend (dicamba trait).  Unfortunately, none of them is going to be marketed in soybeans in 2016, with the possible exception of the dicamba trait from Monsanto.  Our hope is that by December, the Chinese government will approve them.  Even if that happens and the Roundup Ready 2 Xtend soybeans are made available for sale in 2016, the chemistry (dicamba/Clarity) hasn’t yet been approved by the EPA for use in those soybeans.  We’re hoping that happens prior to spring planting.

In anticipation of the launch of the dicamba beans, it’s possible there could be millions of units harvested this fall, but they will not be processed, marketed, or sold until the Chinese government has signed off on them.  If you desperately need the dicamba beans as a tool to stop Roundup-resistant weeds, here’s what we suggest you do:

  1. Talk to your seed dealer about your desire for dicamba soybeans IF they come out over the next few months.  In other words, get yourself on the list for your dealer to call if they get the go-ahead to sell the beans.  This could be important because there will not be an unlimited supply in 2016.
  2. Order the best possible seed genetics for your farm right now.  If the dicamba beans don’t get labeled, you don’t want to get stuck with whatever is left over after everyone else has purchased their seed.
  3. If you are looking for a different seed trait, the only non-selective herbicide available other than Roundup is Liberty.  Liberty seed orders are already booming, so don’t wait long to order LibertyLink seed, as we expect that will sell out much earlier than it did last year.
  4. Whatever you use for a trait/post-emerge herbicide package, use a good soybean pre program.  One pint of Clarity today is around $10 per acre.  If you have to spray that plus Roundup three times in your soybeans, you’ll invest more than $40 per acre.  Use a good pre program with two to three modes of action instead.  That way you will hopefully get by with one post-emerge application, meaning you’ll invest fewer dollars, get as good or better weed control, and you’ll have a lot less risk of future weed resistance since you’re using many different chemical families.

We believe Enlist corn and cotton, as well as Xtend cotton, will be able to have the new chemistry available to help you get better weed control in those crops; but again, we encourage you to use multiple modes of action to reduce weed resistance and get better yields.

One last thing I want you to think about with these new traits is what you can spray elsewhere.  For example, let’s say you have dicamba soybeans and cotton.  That means that if you spray dicamba in your ditches, pastures, and farmyards, there will no longer be a worry of damaging your crops from drift or spray tank contamination.  The Enlist trait should mean the crops will be tolerant to most 2,4-D products, etc.  Burndown applications with big rates of 2,4-D or dicamba will also be a possibility going forward.  We are really excited about all the opportunities these traits mean for weed control on the farm.  We just hope they come to market soon.