Herbicide Shortages Could Have Some Ag Producers Looking At Possible Alternatives
Herbicide Shortages Could Have Some Ag Producers Looking At Possible Alternatives
March 16, 2022Steve Schwaller
(Lakefield, Mn.)– Not only are ag producers having a tough time finding and paying for fertilizer right now, but herbicides and insecticides are also in tight supply and high in cost. Jim Nesseth of Extended Ag Services in Lakefield says a recent ban on one chemical is adding to the pressure…
“If it turns out to be a dry season, you know we could have some insect pressure and I know one of the products that we’re not going to be able to utilize this next year is Lorsban. They’ve banned that from use, and that was a really effective and low cost insecticide, but fortunately we have other insecticides to choose from, some different families, that are fairly effective, and so we’ll have to look at that. But it’s a little disappointing we can’t use that particular product.”
Nesseth says pre-emergence herbicides will be a key part of the weed control strategy this season…
“If we can gain some control with a pre-emergent herbicide and maybe just do one pass with Liberty or Roundup, that can help cut some costs, or we can look at some different products that might help, too. Some of the corn killers, corn control killers. They also have good control on grass and maybe on the soybean side of that rotation we can use some of that for grass control if needed.”
Nesseth says non-chemical means of weed control could also be an option, things such as cultivation, rotary hoes, narrow rows and even hand weeding.
