The U.S. Plant Introduction Collection for six pepper species (2694 accessions) was evaluated for tolerance to bentazon in a field study. Based on injury ratings, Capsicum annuum, C. chinense, and C. frutescens accessions were mostly intermediate in response to bentazon with relatively few highly tolerant or susceptible. Most of C. bacatum, C. chacoense, and C. pubescens and the unspeciated accessions were susceptible. Greenhouse experiments indicated that although most of the tolerant selections were highly tolerant, none was more tolerant than the C. annuum cultivars ‘Santaka’ or ‘Bohemian Chili’. None of the susceptible selections were more susceptible to bentazon than the C. annuum cultivar ‘Sweet Banana’. Individual plants that were highly tolerant were self-pollinated to produce progeny that were all highly bentazon tolerant, but none was more tolerant than Santaka or Bohemian Chili.

Field studies were conducted to determine the most effective rate of several herbicides applied at various growth stages to control downy brome in conservation fallow programs. Downy brome growth stage affected the efficacy of all herbicides. All herbicides were less effective when application was delayed until the boot stage of downy brome. Fluazifop-P and sethoxydim must be applied prior to tillering to effectively control downy brome. Glyphosate, the commercial mixture of glyphosate plus 2,4-D, paraquat, and HOE-39866 consistently controlled downy brome up to the 3- to 5-tiller stage. Glyphosate at 180 to 200 g ha-1, paraquat at 250 to 300 g ha-1, and the commercial mixture of glyphosate plus 2,4-D at 600 to 660 g ha-1 controlled downy brome 80 to 90%. The effective rates were lower than rates currently registered for downy brome control in western Canada, and thus there is potential for making conservation fallow programs more economical when downy brome is the predominant weed.

Field studies were conducted in 1987 and 1988 at Fayetteville and Clarkedale, AR, to evaluate various herbicide treatments for johnsongrass control in soybeans. Herbicide treatments were postemergence applications of sethoxydim, fenoxaprop, fluazifop-P, haloxyfop, quizalofop, imazethapyr, and clethodim. No significant soybean injury was noted in 1987 or 1988 at either location in the johnsongrass experiments. All treatments except those with fenoxaprop and imazethapyr, provided 70 to 90% johnsongrass control. Generally, soybean yields were reduced from treatments that controlled less than 60% of the johnsongrass.

In the greenhouse, soil applications of primisulfuron (40 g ai ha–1) reduced growth of emerged rhizome johnsongrass plants more than nicosulfuron (40 g ai ha–1). Both herbicides reduced growth more when applied to foliage only; a further decrease in growth did not occur for applications to both soil and foliage. Primisulfuron did not completely prevent regrowth of johnsongrass with any application method. Nicosulfuron prevented regrowth when applied to the foliage and to both soil and foliage. In single-year field studies in corn at four dryland sites and two irrigated sites, 50:50 split applications of primisulfuron (40 g ai ha–1) and nicosulfuron (35 g ai ha–1) approximately 2 wk apart provided the most consistent rhizome johnsongrass control compared with early or late single applications when visually rated 8 wk after the first application. Nicosulfuron treatments were more effective than primisulfuron treatments at both dryland sites the first year and at one of two dryland sites the second year. Primisulfuron and nicosulfuron at the irrigated site the first year were equivalent in efficacy. Nicosulfuron was more effective than primisulfuron at the irrigated site the second year. Primisulfuron or nicosulfuron treatments more than doubled corn yields at the dryland sites both years regardless of application timing. Split applications of primisulfuron or nicosulfuron provided the highest yields (approximately 80% increase over untreated plots) at the irrigated site the first year. All treatments provided equivalent yield increases (approximately 50%) the second year.

The influence of ammonium sulfate on the activity of sethoxydim on wild oats and barley was examined under field conditions in 1989 and 1990. A chlorophyll assay, together with plant height and dry weight determinations, was used to quantify the visual ratings for sethoxydim activity. Ammonium sulfate enhanced the activity of 75 and 150 g ai ha-1 sethoxydim in 1989. In 1990, ammonium sulfate increased the activity of the lower rate of sethoxydim only. Of the three quantitative assays, chlorophyll concentration alone differentiated the more rapid development of injury symptoms with added ammonium sulfate that was observed in the visual ratings. The chlorophyll assay was not better than the visual rating assessment, however, and appears to offer no advantages that would justify the time required.

Adjuvants enhanced DPX-V9360 control of green foxtail in the greenhouse and field as follows: methylated sunflower oil > petroleum oil > nonionic surfactant WK > nonionic surfactant X-77. DPX-V9360 applied at rates that controlled weeds did not injure corn. Green foxtail control with DPX-V9360 decreased as the amount of simulated rainfall after application increased from 0 to 4 mm and control increased as a 2 mm simulated rainfall was delayed up to 24 h. The influence of simulated rainfall differed with adjuvants, but adjuvants did not overcome the lower green foxtail control with simulated rainfall. DPX-V9360 was more phytotoxic to green foxtail and redroot pigweed at 95 to 100% than 45 to 50% relative humidity and at 20 or 30 C than 10 C after treatment.

Field studies in 1988 and 1989 evaluated POST herbicides alone and in tank-mixtures for tropic croton control in peanut. Acifluorfen + 2,4-DB, acifluorfen + bentazon, acifluorfen + bentazon + 2,4-DB controlled > 90% of tropic croton when applied at 2 or 4 wk after crop emergence. Paraquat + bentazon controlled 55% at 2 wk and 24% at 4 wk after crop emergence. Imazethapyr and imazethapyr + 2,4-DB controlled < 24% tropic croton at either 2 or 4 wk after crop emergence. Acifluorfen + 2,4-DB, acifluorfen + bentazon, and acifluorfen + bentazon + 2,4-DB controlled at least 90% of the common lambsquarters, common ragweed, and morningglory species. Greatest yields and net returns were obtained with acifluorfen + bentazon + 2,4-DB applied 2 wk after crop emergence. Yields were higher with acifluorfen + bentazon + 2,4-DB and imazethapyr applied at 2 wk after crop emergence than at 4 wk after crop emergence. All other herbicide treatments provided equivalent yields among application timings. Only acifluorfen + 2,4-DB provided equivalent net returns at either application timing. All other herbicide treatments provided lower net returns with applications made at 4 wk than at 2 wk after crop emergence.

Carpetgrass is a warm season grass used in the south as low maintenance turf, especially in wet areas where other turf species do not persist. The response of carpetgrass to postemergence (POST) herbicides currently available for turf producers has not been thoroughly investigated and was the objective of four experiments conducted over a 2-yr period. Slight reduction in turf quality followed application of atrazine (2.2 kg ai ha-1), bentazon (2.2 kg ai ha-1), imazaquin (0.4 and 0.6 kg ai ha-1), mecoprop (1.1 kg ai ha-1), triclopyr (0.6 kg ai ha-1), metsulfuron (0.2 kg ai ha-1), 2,4-D (1.1 kg ai ha-1), 2,4-D plus dicamba (0.8 + 0.3 kg ai ha-1), and 2,4-D plus dicamba plus mecoprop (0.9 + 0.1 + 0.5 kg ai ha-1). Marginally acceptable turf quality followed sulfometuron (0.2 kg ai ha-1), sethoxydim (0.3 and 0.6 kg ai ha-1), and diclofop (2.2 kg ai ha-1) treatments. Unacceptable turf quality resulted from asulam (2.2 kg ai ha-1) and MSMA (1.1 and 2.2 kg ai ha-1) treatments. Carpetgrass tolerated most POST broadleaf and sedge herbicides but was sensitive to most POST grass herbicides used in other turf species, with the exception of sethoxydim.

Field studies were conducted in second-ratoon crops of sugarcane infested with rhizome johnsongrass to determine the effects of aqueous diluent volumes ranging from 47 to 561 L ha-1 on the performance of asulam. Trend analyses of johnsongrass recovery, based on panicle numbers late in the growing season, indicated a quadratic response with panicle numbers being lowest when asulam at 2.8 kg ai ha-1 was applied in a diluent volume approaching 187 L ha-1. The response was similar regardless of whether droplet size or number was altered to obtain these diluent volumes. Differences in late-season johnsongrass control were reflected in harvested sugarcane stalk populations and net cane yields. In greenhouse studies, johnsongrass plants were thoroughly washed with water 24 h after treatment with asulam at 2.8 kg ha-1 at water volumes ranging from 47 to 374 L ha-1. Asulam absorption, as evidenced by reduction in the growth of johnsongrass, was higher when surfactant was included, but was not affected by diluent volumes in the range evaluated.

Crambe has gained interest as an alternative crop for industrial oil production. No herbicides are currently registered in crambe and weed control strategies need to be identified if crambe is to become a viable crop. Field experiments were conducted to determine crambe tolerance to several herbicides. Crambe was tolerant to soil-applied trifluralin, pendimethalin, and cinmethylin, or DPX-A7881 applied postemergence. Postemergence applications of chlorimuron or imazethapyr were injurious to crambe.

Wild oat, a competitive weed in corn, can be controlled by atrazine applied postemergence but at rates causing carryover problems on high pH soils rotated to susceptible crops. Experiments at Fargo, ND and Barnesville, MN were established in corn using atrazine rates ranging from 0.14 to 0.84 kg ai ha–1 supplemented with cyanazine to provide 1.68 kg ai ha–1 total triazine herbicide. Atrazine at 0.84 kg ha–1 plus cyanazine at 0.84 kg ha–1 controlled 2- to 3-leaf wild oat 40 to 55%, but control increased to 90 to 95% by adding tridiphane at 0.56 or 0.84 kg ai ha–1. In greenhouse experiments, tridiphane synergistically increased wild oat control by atrazine and cyanazine. Tridiphane applied 1 or 2 d before atrazine or before an atrazine-cyanazine mixture generally controlled wild oat similar to the tridiphane-triazine tank mix.

Velvetleaf control in sugarbeet by clomazone and commercially available sugarbeet herbicides was investigated in greenhouse and field studies. In greenhouse studies, clomazone at 0.07 and 0.04 kg ai ha-1 controlled 97 and 69% of velvetleaf, respectively, with little visible sugarbeet injury. Adding clomazone to pyrazon, TCA, ethofumesate, pyrazon plus TCA, or TCA plus ethofumesate increased velvetleaf control but increased visible sugarbeet injury. In field studies, clomazone at 0.07 kg ha-1 did not enhance sugarbeet injury. However, velvetleaf was not controlled by clomazone alone or clomazone plus pyrazon, ethofumesate, combinations of pyrazon plus TCA, pyrazon plus ethofumesate, or pyrazon plus TCA plus ethofumesate. Cycloate preplant incorporated plus pyrazon preemergence followed by postemergence herbicides controlled velvetleaf in all 3 yr of research. Postemergence herbicides increased velvetleaf control from soil-applied herbicides in 1987 and 1988.

We conducted research to determine if soybeans can be grown successfully in a no-till environment, in the semi-arid areas of the central Great Plains near North Platte, NE. Soybeans planted no-till into winter wheat stubble that was sprayed with glyphosate yielded more than when planted into soil that was rototilled in a winter wheat-soybean-fallow rotation. However, grain yield averaged only 420 kg ha-1 during 1975, 1976, and 1977. No-till soybean grown in a winter wheat-grain sorghum-soybean rotation during 1982 through 1985 yielded an average of 1370 kg ha-1. Low yields were associated with lack of precipitation during the fallow period after winter wheat harvest or grain sorghum harvest and during the soybean pod elongation and filling period. Several herbicides gave excellent weed control in soybeans when applied either after wheat harvest, early preplant, or at planting time. None of the herbicides persisted long enough to reduce grain yields of winter wheat planted into the soybean residue. With present production costs these nonirrigated rotations are not economical in the semi-arid region of the central Great Plains of the United States.

Pathogenicity of four Colletotrichum coccodes isolates to potato, eastern black nightshade, and hairy nightshade was evaluated in greenhouse studies. Three Idaho isolates, AC-14, AC-28, and AC-44, and an isolate obtained from Mycogen Corporation, AC-Myc, produced lesions on potato foliage. Plants inoculated with AC-14, AC-28, and AC-44 also showed wilt symptoms similar to those produced by Verticillium dahliae as potatoes were beginning to senesce. Infection by AC-44 reduced tuber fresh weight and specific gravity. All isolates colonized eastern black and hairy nightshade, although some isolates caused little or no symptom development. Thus, both species may serve as sources of primary inoculum for C. coccodes isolates that are pathogenic to potatoes. Only AC-Myc substantially injured the leaves of both nightshade species. AC-Myc was more pathogenic to eastern black than to hairy nightshade, and to plants inoculated at the 3- to 4-leaf versus the 7- to 8-leaf stage.

Growth and development of bigroot morningglory was observed and quantified. Emergence occurred 75 ± 5 growing degree days (GDD) after seeding. Flower and seed production began 630 ± 20 GDD after emergence and continued until the first frost killed the shoots. Seedlings needed approximately 460 GDD of growth to become perennial. In the second year of growth, plants emerged in early May and flowered within 425 ± 50 GDD. Shoot dry weight accumulation in first-year plants was 3.5 g for the first 600 GDD after which a fifteenfold increase in dry weight occurred. Root growth followed the same pattern, however the large increase in dry weight occurred approximately 300 GDD later than that of the shoots. The root:shoot ratio was 0.2 to 0.3 for the first 900 GDD and increased to greater than 1.0 by the final harvest.

Field studies were conducted for four consecutive years to determine if repeated applications of trifluralin (preplant incorporated), metolachlor (preemergence), and fluazifop (postemergence) herbicides alone or combined could be utilized in soybean to effectively control grass weed populations and maintain optimum yield in an irrigated environment where metribuzin plus dinoseb (preemergence) and 2,4-DB plus linuron (postemergence) were used as a standard weed control system. After repeated applications each year, all treatments maintained similar yields that were no different from yields obtained from the standard system. Grass weed infestation did not increase significantly in the treatment that received only the standard weed control herbicides over the duration of the study.

Two experiments were conducted. The first experiment compared sweet corn tolerance to clopyralid at 0.2 to 1.1 kg ha-1, EF-689 at 0.07 to 0.6 kg ha-1 and 2,4-D at either 0.3 or 0.6 kg ha-1. Sweet corn tolerated all rates of clopyralid. EF-689 at 0.2 kg ha-1 or greater caused stalk curvature, stunting, and yield reductions. Stalk curvature also resulted from 2,4-D, but not stunting or yield reductions. The second experiment determined the effect of sweet corn genotype and growth stage at application on injury from EF-689. Injury was genotype and growth stage dependent. Stalk curvature was most severe from treatments 6 wk after emergence, whereas the greatest stunting was from treatments at 4 wk. ‘Supreme’ had the least and ‘Maple Sweet’ the most stalk curvature.

The effectiveness of soil solarization with black (BPE) and clear polyethylene mulches (CPE), 0.04 and 0.06 mm thick, respectively, was tested during the 1986 to 1990 growing seasons for controlling Egyptian broomrape, hemp broomrape and nodding broomrape in heavily infested fields. Solarization for 6 wk reduced or eliminated broomrape infestation and improved crop yields. The CPE started to show splitting and deterioration after 4 to 5 wk of solarization. The BPE lasted in usable conditions throughout the growing season. Deep soil tillage with the hand hoe, after solarization, caused broomrape to reappear. Crops grew best in plots after solarization with BPE if they were planted through the same mulch after it was perforated. Soil solarization with BPE or CPE in large tomato field trials, completely eliminated both nodding and hemp broomrapes during the growing season. However, greenhouse pot experiments indicated that solarization significantly reduced weed seedling numbers, but did not significantly reduce the dry weights of the broomrape plants that emerged in the soil samples taken from solarized plots.

There were no differences in johnsongrass rhizome winter survival at central and southeastern locations in Pennsylvania in 1988 or 1989. At a 6-cm depth of burial, survival rates of 5 and 25% were found for rhizome segments 7.5 and 15.0 cm in length, respectively. Survival rates for rhizomes buried 25 cm averaged 86%, with no difference in survival between rhizome lengths. The majority of rhizome biomass produced by the biotype used in these studies was found at soil depths allowing a high percentage of survival.

Two field experiments were conducted from 1986 to 1988 to determine efficacy of herbidices and plant growth regulators for red rice control and suppression in water- and drill-seeded rice. Molinate applied PPI with fenoxaprop applied at panicle initiation (PI) of rice controlled 94 and 86% of red rice in water- and drill-seeded rice, respectively, compared with 79 and 49%, respectively, for molinate PPI alone in the two cultures. Although this treatment injured rice slightly (< 30%), rice so treated produced high yields with improved grain quality. Sequential treatments of molinate PPI followed by sethoxydim applied at PI or amidochlor applied at > 90% heading produced comparable rice yields with improved red rice control or suppression and grain quality in both cultures, compared with PPI molinate. Drill-seeded rice treated with molinate PPI followed by fenoxaprop applied at late boot or MH (maleic hydazide) applied 7 d after heading produced higher yield than rice treated with molinate PPI.