Greenhouse and field experiments were conducted near Knoxville, TN, during 2002 and 2003 to investigate the effects of calcium and magnesium ions on the performance of three glyphosate formulations with and without diammonium sulfate (AMS). Weed species investigated in the greenhouse were broadleaf signalgrass, pitted morningglory, Palmer amaranth, and yellow nutsedge. Three glyphosate formulations (isopropylamine salt, diammonium salt, and potassium salt) and two glyphosate application rates (0.42 and 0.84 kg ae/ha) were applied to weeds in water fortified with either calcium or magnesium at concentrations of 0, 250, 500, 750, and 1,000 ppm. In all comparisons, there were no differences in the three glyphosate formulations. Glyphosate activity was reduced only when cation concentration was >250 ppm, and this antagonism was not observed when 2% w/ w AMS was added to the spray solution. A chemical analysis of the calcium and magnesium concentrations in water collected from farmers indicated that water samples from eight different producers contained relatively low amounts of cations, with calcium at <40 ppm and magnesium at <8 ppm. In the field results using these and other waters as the herbicide carrier, broadleaf signalgrass control was greater with the 0.84 kg ae/ha than 0.42 kg ae/ha glyphosate rate regardless of water source or addition of AMS. Pitted morningglory responded similarly to glyphosate with water from all farms and with AMS added, and the addition of AMS gave similar results for both glyphosate rates. In 2003, common cocklebur was evaluated and control was >93% regardless of glyphosate rate, water source, or AMS addition. Based on these results, the addition of AMS-based adjuvants to many glyphosate applications may not be warranted.

Biotypes of smallflower umbrella sedge and ricefield bulrush resistant to acetolactate synthase (ALS)-inhibiting herbicides have been reported in several rice areas of the world. Here, we present results of a study conducted on whole plants of seven smallflower umbrella sedge and four ricefield bulrush biotypes collected in Italian, Spanish, and Californian rice fields to evaluate cross-resistance to ALS herbicides in these important weeds of temperate rice. The following herbicides were tested: bensulfuron-methyl, halosulfuron, cinosulfuron, imazamox, and bispyribac-sodium. The smallflower umbrella sedge and ricefield bulrush biotypes studied exhibited different cross-resistance patterns, some of which have not been previously reported. The Italian smallflower umbrella sedge biotype was cross-resistant to bensulfuron-methyl, cinosulfuron, imazamox, and bispyribac-sodium, but was susceptible to halosulfuron. One smallflower umbrella sedge biotype from California was also resistant to bensulfuron-methyl, imazamox, and bispyribac-sodium, but had a lower level of resistance to halosulfuron. In contrast, the second smallflower umbrella sedge biotype from California was strongly resistant to halosulfuron and was also resistant to bensulfuron-methyl and bispyribac-sodium, but moderately resistant to imazamox. The Spanish smallflower biotype was resistant to the sulfonylurea herbicides bensulfuron-methyl and halosulfuron. Different responses were observed in ricefield bulrush. The Italian biotype was resistant to the sulfonylureas only, whereas the biotype from California exhibited broad cross-resistance to all the ALS herbicides tested. Knowledge on cross-resistance is needed to formulate herbicide use and weed management strategies for delaying the evolution of resistance to ALS herbicides in rice systems.

In the Southern Great Plains, producers of hard red winter wheat seek sustainable methods for controlling cheat and improving economic returns. Experiments were conducted at two sites in north-central Oklahoma to determine the effect of cheat management programs, with various weed control strategies, on cheat densities and total net returns. The cheat management programs, initiated following harvest of winter wheat, included conventionally tilled, double-crop grain sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L.) followed by soybean (Glycine max L.); and continuous winter wheat. Rotating out of winter wheat for one growing season increased yield of succedent wheat up to 32% and 42% at Billings and Ponca City, respectively. Dockage due to cheat in the succedent wheat was reduced up to 78% and 87% by rotating out of winter wheat for one growing season at Billings and Ponca City, respectively. Cheat management programs including a crop rotation with herbicides applied to the grain sorghum, except for an application of atrazine + metolachlor at Ponca City, improved total net returns over the nontreated continuous wheat option. Cheat panicles in the succedent wheat were reduced up to 87% by rotation out of winter wheat for one growing season.

Studies were conducted in 2002 and 2003 on a golf course fairway in New Jersey to compare spring, summer, and fall treatments of bispyribac-sodium for annual bluegrass control and creeping bentgrass tolerance. Single applications at 74, 111, or 148 g ai/ha were applied in May, August, or October. Split applications of 37 followed by (fb) 37 or 74 fb 74 g/ha applied 3 wk apart were also evaluated. Summer-applied bispyribac-sodium did not reduce bentgrass quality, whereas spring and fall treatments reduced turf quality at 3 wk after treatment and fall treatments in 2002 substantially reduced bentgrass quality. Summer treatments were more effective than spring or fall treatments in reducing annual bluegrass cover. Final evaluations revealed 36, 31, 21, and 26% annual bluegrass cover averaged across nontreated, spring-treated, summer-treated, and fall-treated plots, respectively. This study demonstrates that two split applications of bispyribac-sodium at 74 g/ha in summer can effectively reduce annual bluegrass cover while minimizing creeping bentgrass injury.

Bispyribac-sodium is a POST herbicide that selectively controls annual bluegrass in creeping bentgrass, but inconsistent results with seasonal applications are believed to occur from temperature influences on bispyribac-sodium efficacy. Growth chamber experiments at the New Jersey Experimental Greenhouse Research Complex, New Brunswick, NJ, investigated three temperature regimes on ‘L-93’ creeping bentgrass and annual bluegrass responses to bispyribac-sodium. Annual bluegrass and creeping bentgrass exhibited contrasting responses to bispyribac-sodium as temperature increased from 10 to 30 C. Regressions of 4 week after treatment (WAT) data revealed as temperature increased from 10 to 30 C, required bispyribac-sodium rates for 50% clipping reduction (CR50) of annual bluegrass decreased from 85 to 31 g ai/ha and required rates for 50% leaf chlorosis decreased from greater than 296 to 98, indicating increased herbicidal efficacy at higher temperatures. In contrast, required bispyribac-sodium rates for creeping bentgrass CR50 increased from 200 to greater than 296 as temperature increased from 10 to 30 C. Bispyribac-sodium discolored creeping bentgrass 0 to 20% at 20 and 30 C and discoloration increased 10 to 50% at 10 C. Thus, warmer temperatures (20 and 30 C) increase bispyribac-sodium efficacy for annual bluegrass control with minimal bentgrass discoloration; however, cooler temperatures (10 C) have minimal efficacy on annual bluegrass and increase bentgrass chlorosis.

Response of creeping bentgrass, annual bluegrass, and Kentucky bluegrass to foliar, soil, or foliar plus soil applications of bispyribac-sodium was evaluated in greenhouse studies. Soil-alone and foliar plus soil applications of bispyribac-sodium at 148 or 296 g ai/ha resulted in greater injury and shoot dry weight reduction of all species 28 d after treatment (DAT) compared to foliar-alone treatments. Creeping bentgrass was less injured than annual or Kentucky bluegrass regardless of application placement. Further studies evaluated foliar and root absorption and translocation of 14C-bispyribac-sodium in creeping bentgrass, annual bluegrass, Kentucky bluegrass, and roughtstalk bluegrass. Foliar absorption into creeping bentgrass was less than that of other species at most harvest timings from 4 to 72 h after treatment. Annual and roughstalk bluegrass translocated greater amounts of foliar-absorbed 14C to the crown and shoots compared to creeping bentgrass. Annual and roughstalk bluegrass accumulated approximately 47% more 14C per dry weight of plant tissue than creeping bentgrass and 74% more than Kentucky bluegrass after 72 h in nutrient solution containing 14C-bispyribac-sodium. Annual and roughstalk bluegrass translocated approximately 80% of root-absorbed 14C to shoots, whereas creeping bentgrass and Kentucky bluegrass translocated slightly less (66% of absorbed for both species). These studies suggest that bispyribac-sodium is readily absorbed by roots and translocated to shoots which may contribute to its total activity within a plant. In addition, creeping bentgrass displayed lower amounts of foliar and root absorption and subsequent translocation than annual and roughstalk bluegrass which may contribute to greater bispyribac-sodium tolerance displayed by creeping bentgrass.

Experiments were conducted between 2002 and 2004 at multiple locations in Florida to determine the efficacy of aminopyralid and other herbicides on tropical soda apple (TSA) control. Aminopyralid applied at rates ≥0.08 kg ai/ha consistently provided >96% TSA control up to 335 d after treatment (DAT), while applications <0.06 kg/ha were less effective as well as inconsistent. Control of TSA with aminopyralid was often not statistically different from control with triclopyr, picloram, or dicamba. However, these responses were likely due to the variability in TSA control by triclopyr, picloram, or dicamba across several locations. For example, the standard error of the mean for TSA control with picloram at 335 DAT was 8, compared to 1 for aminopyralid. Herbicides were applied in April, January, and June, but time of year did not affect the efficacy of aminopyralid. Aminopyralid possesses soil residual activity and controlled 98% of germinating seedlings at 75 DAT, compared to 0% control for triclopyr or 2,4-D + dicamba. Therefore, aminopyralid controlled TSA from foliar applications and soil residual activity more consistently than any other herbicide evaluated in these experiments.

Herbicide-resistant corn hybrids offer additional options for POST weed control in corn, and growers may benefit from information on the consistency of these weed-control strategies. Studies were conducted in Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and Ohio, in 2000 and 2001, to evaluate weed control among herbicide strategies for imidazolinone-resistant, glufosinate-resistant, glyphosate-resistant, and conventional corn. Isogenic hybrids were utilized to minimize variation in growth and yield potential among hybrids. The glyphosate-resistant corn postemergence (glyphosate-POST) treatment provided more consistent control of giant foxtail than the PRE, conventional corn postemergence (conventional-POST), glufosinate-resistant corn postemergence (glufosinate-POST), and imidazolinone-resistant corn postemergence (imi-POST) treatments. All four POST treatments were more consistent and provided greater control than the PRE treatment of the large-seeded broadleaf weeds velvetleaf, giant ragweed, common cocklebur, and morningglory species. Conventional-POST and imi-POST were more consistent than glufosinate-POST and glyphosate-POST treatments in controlling giant ragweed. There were no statistical differences in the variability of PRE or POST treatments for control of common lambsquarters, common ragweed, and redroot pigweed. Corn yield varied among locations and years. The glyphosate-POST treatment did not reduce yield relative to the weed-free treatment, the imi-POST and glufosinate-POST treatments each reduced yield in one of eight locations, and the conventional-POST treatment reduced yield in three of eight locations.

Greenhouse studies were conducted to determine the effect of 1-aminomethanamide dihydrogen tetraoxosulfate (AMADS) as a spray adjuvant on the efficacy of three different glyphosate formulations, the isopropylamine salt (glyphosate-IPA), potassium salt (glyphosate-K), and the acid of glyphosate dissolved in AMADS (glyphosate-A). All formulations were tested at multiple rates with and without AMADS (2% v/v) on greenhouse-grown corn, and growth inhibition was determined by measuring the elongation of the newest emerging leaf between 1 and 7 d after treatment. AMADS increased the efficacy of all three glyphosate formulations by threefold to fourfold. The IC50 values for glyphosate-IPA, glyphosate-K, and glyphosate-A without AMADS on corn were 77, 54, and 53 g ae/ha, respectively; and with AMADS the values were 20, 18, and 21 g/ha, respectively. AMADS was more effective than ammonium sulfate (2% w/v) in overcoming the antagonism of hard water (200 parts per million Ca+2) on glyphosate-K efficacy on corn. The rainfastness of glyphosate-IPA, glyphosate-A, and glyphosate-K was improved with AMADS.

Corn inbreds are often more sensitive to herbicides than hybrids. Field experiments were conducted with three corn inbreds to (1) evaluate inbred sensitivity to the acetamide herbicides acetochlor, dimethenamid, flufenacet, and metolachlor, (2) compare the effects of various crop safeners in combination with acetochlor and metolachlor, and (3) measure the effect of herbicide microencapsulation on acetochlor injury. Herbicides were applied preemergence at the registered rate and at two, three, or four times the registered rate in corn. Injury ratings, plant population, and the percentage of plants showing acetamide injury symptoms were used to measure herbicide effect. The inbreds ‘Mo17’ and ‘Great Lakes 15’ (GL15) were sensitive to acetamide injury. Reductions in plant population and increases in the injury rating and the percentage of injured plants were caused by acetochlor, dimethenamid, flufenacet, metolachlor, and flufenacet + metribuzin when applied at three times the registered rate. The inbred ‘B73’ was not injured. The safeners benoxacor and dichlormid reduced injury caused by metolachlor. The percentage of plants injured by metolachlor 15 days after treatment (DAT) was lower when benoxacor was the safener compared to dichlormid. By 28 DAT, plants treated with safeners recovered from injury, and there were no differences between the treatments. The safeners dichlormid and furilazole reduced, but did not always eliminate, injury caused by acetochlor applied at three times the registered rate. Microencapsulation of acetochlor reduced injury to GL15. When the safeners dichlormid or furilazole were included in an acetochlor formulation, microencapsulation did not further reduce corn injury.

Sulfentrazone was applied POST at 13, 26, or 53 g ai/ha alone or in combination with metribuzin at 280 or 420 g ai/ha in field trials conducted with ‘Russet Burbank’ potatoes in 2002 to 2004. Sulfentrazone alone provided less than 84% redroot pigweed, common lambsquarters, and kochia control, although control usually improved to 90% or greater when metribuzin was included. Hairy nightshade control reached 90% only when the highest rates of both herbicides were applied in combination. Sulfentrazone alone did not provide any volunteer oat control, whereas control was 85% when the highest metribuzin rate was included. Potato crop injury, consisting of chlorosis, interveinal blackening of the leaves, eventual necrosis, leaf malformation, and plant stunting, increased as the sulfentrazone rate increased. In contrast, injury decreased as metribuzin rate increased from 0 to 420 g/ha, when averaged across sulfentrazone rates. Reduction in injury levels and increased weed control translated to improved tuber yields as metribuzin rate increased. However, when sulfentrazone was combined with the highest metribuzin rate, potato injury was still relatively high at 26 and 18% at 1 and 4 wk after treatment, and acceptance of sulfentrazone applied POST with metribuzin by potato growers is unlikely.

Substantial weed growth often occurs in legume-cereal cover-crop mixes commonly grown on organic vegetable farms. A 2-yr study at the USDA-ARS in Salinas, CA, was conducted to test the effect of zero, one, and two passes with a rotary hoe on weed control in a mixed cover crop of 10% rye, 15% common vetch, 15% purple vetch, 25% peas, and 35% bell bean. Rotary hoeing occurred 14–15 days after planting (DAP) in the one-pass treatment, and 14 and 28 DAP in the two-pass treatment. Rotary hoeing did not affect total cover-crop density or biomass in either year, but reduced rye density and biomass in year 2. One pass reduced total weed density by 69% in year 1 and 49% in year 2. A second pass did not affect weed density in year 1 but reduced weed density an additional 33% in year 2. One pass decreased weed biomass in year 1, whereas two passes were required to reduce weed biomass in year 2. Rotary hoeing reduced seed shed by chickweed and shepherd's-purse seeds, the two predominant weed species, by 80 to 95% in both years. Rotary hoe efficacy depended on weather conditions directly before and after cultivation. The decision to repeat rotary hoeing should be based upon field scouting and weather conditions following the initial pass with the rotary hoe.

Putatively resistant (PR) and putatively susceptible (PS) common waterhemp populations were grown in the greenhouse and sprayed at the three- to four-leaf stage with glyphosate (0.63 kg ae/ha). Surviving plants from PR populations and randomly selected plants from PS populations were clonally propagated and the clones were sprayed with 0.1 to 10.0 kg/ha glyphosate. The glyphosate rates required to reduce growth by 50% (GR50) among the clones were relatively similar, but the concentration required to reduce growth by 90% (GR90) ranged from 1.5 to 16.3 kg/ha. The concentration of glyphosate required to kill 90% of plants (LD90) ranged from 2.3 kg/ha to over 10.0 kg/ ha. This range of responses to glyphosate in common waterhemp clones from different parts of the Midwestern United States indicates a risk of evolution of resistance in common waterhemp populations that are repeatedly selected by applications of glyphosate in the field.

Blessed thistle is an important medicinal crop in Europe and recently has become more significant in North America. A limiting factor in blessed thistle production is weed interference. Field experiments were conducted near Plovdiv, Bulgaria, to study the effect of selected herbicides on weed control, crop productivity, and crop quality. Seed yields of blessed thistle were increased with metribuzin alone at 0.5 kg ai/ha, pendimethalin alone 1.32 kg ai/ha, pendimethalin at 1.32 kg ai/ha plus metribuzin at 0.5 kg ai/ha, trifluralin at 0.84 kg ai/ha plus linuron at 1.0 kg ai/ha, and in the hand-weeded control compared to the nonweeded control (nontreated check). Pendimethalin and metribuzin were safe both alone and in combination for weed control in blessed thistle. Bentazon at 0.96 kg ai/ha inhibited blessed thistle development and reduced seed yields compared to the untreated check. Generally, weed control increased the content of silymarin and decreased the amount of seed oil. Overall, seeds contained 0.26 to 0.36% taxifolin, 0.69 to 0.99% silydianin plus silycristin, 1.31 to 1.78% silybin, and 0.27 to 0.39 % isosilybin.

Field studies were conducted to evaluate rice injury and control of propanil-resistant and -susceptible (natural infestation) barnyardgrass, broadleaf signalgrass, and Amazon sprangletop with BAS 625, cyhalofop, and fenoxaprop plus the safener isoxadifen in rice. BAS 625 at 100 g ai/ha applied to two- to three-leaf rice resulted in 19 to 72% injury in three of four experiments. Fenoxaprop plus isoxadifen at 90 + 98 g ai/ha injured rice 11 to 31%, and cyhalofop at 280 g ai/ha consistently resulted in minimal rice injury. The most effective control (84 to 99%) of propanil-resistant and propanil-susceptible barnyardgrass across all experiments was achieved with sequential applications of the BAS 625 at 75 and 100 g ai/ha, cyhalofop at 210 and 280 g ai/ha, and fenoxaprop plus isoxadifen at 68 + 74 and 90 + 98 g ai/ha. When the graminicides were applied to four- to six-leaf rice (one tiller), propanil-resistant and propanil-susceptible barnyardgrass control was generally very poor. Fenoxaprop plus isoxadifen controlled broadleaf signalgrass 91 to 100%, even when applied once to four- to six-leaf rice. BAS 625 at 75 and 100 g ai/ha and cyhalofop at 210 and 280 g ai/ha applied sequentially provided consistent broadleaf signalgrass control (≥98%). Amazon sprangletop control was good (85 to 99%) with fenoxaprop plus isoxadifen at 45 + 49, 68 + 74, and 90 + 98 g ai/ha (applied in a single application or sequentially), BAS 625 at 100 g ai/ha applied to two- to three-leaf and four- to six-leaf rice or 50, 75, and 100 g ai/ha applied sequentially, and cyhalofop at 140, 210, and 280 g ai/ha applied to two- to three-leaf rice or sequentially.

There is a high potential for inadvertent herbicide injury to crops in western Canada on an annual basis because of the diversity of crops grown in close proximity to each other, although accurate data regarding the annual number of injury incidents is not available. A field study was conducted at two locations in southern Manitoba, Canada, in 2001 and 2002, to investigate the effects of a range of dosages of MCPA ester, glyphosate, and thifensulfuron:tribenuron (2:1) applied to the seedling growth stage of conventional (nongenetically engineered) canola and white bean on subsequent shoot dry matter and crop yield. Similar to other studies that utilized sublethal herbicide dosages, results between site-years were variable, particularly for crop yield. Where possible, a nonlinear log-logistic model was fitted to the data. Generally, canola was more sensitive than white bean to the herbicides used in this study. Based on the fitted regression equations and recorded mean values for canola, 10% of the commercial herbicide dosage normally applied in other (possibly adjacent) crops caused greater than 10% canola yield loss for 9 of 12 unique combinations of herbicide-site-year. For white bean, 10% of the commercial herbicide dosage caused yield losses greater than 10% for only 4 of 13 unique combinations of herbicide-site-year. Spray drift is probably the most common source of inadvertent application of herbicide to sensitive crops; generally, only a fraction of the herbicide dosage applied on an adjacent crop drifts off-target. The results of this study indicate that for any of the three herbicides investigated on canola and white bean, it is difficult to accurately predict eventual crop yield loss based on early season sublethal herbicide injury symptoms due to site-year variability and the potential for crop recovery and compensatory growth. This response was particularly true for white bean in this study.

Spring wheat competitive ability has recently been demonstrated to co-vary with seed size. The objective of this study was to determine if spring wheat seed size would influence the effects of variable tralkoxydim rates on wild oat control, wheat yield, and economic returns. The factorial treatment arrangement consisted of three spring wheat seed size classes and five tralkoxydim rates. Wild oat density, panicles, and biomass decreased as spring wheat seed size and tralkoxydim rate increased, with the combined effect being additive. Wild oat variables decreased in a log-logistic manner as tralkoxydim rate increased during both years. However, tralkoxydim was less effective in 2000 than 2002, as indicated by the higher dosage required to reduce the wild oat variables by 50% (greater I50 values). In contrast, the effect of large seeded wheat in suppressing wild oat was more consistently expressed, with wild oat variables decreasing linearly as seed size increased. Wheat yield and economic returns increased exponentially as tralkoxydim rate increased. At the same time, wheat yield and economic returns were greater for wheat plants derived from large seed compared to those derived from small seed. Averaged over all other factors, adjusted gross returns of 578, 657, and 703 $/ha were realized for the small, medium, and large seed size classes, respectively. The combined use of large seeded wheat plus tralkoxydim applications provided greater wild oat control than did either single tactic. The use of large seeded wheat had a stabilizing effect that increased the consistency and durability of the weed management system while simultaneously improving economic returns.

A 3-yr dryland study was initiated in 1999 at Munday, TX, on an Altus fine sandy loam to determine the most appropriate cotton growth stage or stages at which to apply glyphosate. The objectives were: (1) to evaluate control of silverleaf nightshade in the cotton and (2) to determine the effect on yield. Treatments were: (1) control (C; two cultivations), (2) early glyphosate at the four-leaf stage (E), (3) early glyphosate followed by a midseason application 21 d later (E+M), (4) two cultivations plus late glyphosate at 20% open bolls (L), (5) treatment E+L, and (6) treatment E+M+L. In fall 1999 and 2001, silverleaf nightshade stem numbers decreased in the plots sprayed early and midseason, and increased in plots receiving only late or no applications when compared with the counts in the spring of those years. However, in fall 2000, nightshade numbers were less than in early spring 2000 regardless of treatment, probably because of hot and dry weather. In fall 2001, silverleaf nightshade populations had increased 13-fold and twofold for the C and L treatments, respectively, when compared with populations at the beginning of the study. Other treatments had population decreases of 10 to 90%. Three-year average lint yields were higher with early or early plus midseason applications. Lint yields were similar with early or early plus midseason sprays. Lint yields were higher when nightshade/cotton biomass competition was lower. Early application of glyphosate can effectively control silverleaf nightshade populations and can increase yield when compared to no application or a late application.

Field trials were conducted to evaluate weed control and soybean tolerance with co-application of pyraflufen-ethyl and glyphosate. Pyraflufen-ethyl applied at 11, 23, or 45 g ai/ha in combination with glyphosate did not affect control of barnyardgrass, browntop millet, redroot pigweed, sicklepod, or smellmelon compared to glyphosate alone or co-applied with chlorimuron. Initial benefit (7 DAT) to pitted morningglory control with pyraflufen-ethyl plus glyphosate compared to glyphosate alone or co-applied with chlorimuron was not observed 28 DAT. Hemp sesbania control was increased by pyraflufen-ethyl at 45 g/ha plus glyphosate and glyphosate plus chlorimuron relative to glyphosate applied alone. Pyraflufen-ethyl plus glyphosate resulted in significant visual soybean injury, and a reduction in soybean yield was observed with pyraflufen-ethyl at 45 g/ha relative to glyphosate applied alone or in combination with chlorimuron. Results from a weed-free study confirmed crop injury and yield reduction potential with pyraflufen-ethyl plus glyphosate. Overall results suggest no benefit with respect to weed control or crop tolerance to pyraflufen-ethyl inclusion in a glyphosate-resistant soybean weed control program over that observed with currently registered co-application of glyphosate and chlorimuron.

Texas wheat producers have observed reduced efficacy and failure to control Italian ryegrass with registered rates of sulfonylurea herbicides that were previously effective. Growth chamber studies were conducted to quantify the sensitivity and distribution of Italian ryegrass ecotypes in Texas to triasulfuron and to determine alternative herbicide management options. Italian ryegrass seed samples were collected from over 40 wheat fields in 13 central and north Texas counties where declining Italian ryegrass control was reported by farmers following sulfonylurea herbicide application(s). Two-leaf Italian ryegrass was screened with an application of 150 g ai/ha triasulfuron, a rate five times the registered herbicide use rate. Sensitivity was determined by the response of an ecotype to that of a known susceptible population. Of the 48 Italian ryegrass ecotypes sampled, nine were comparable to susceptible standard, while the remaining 39 ecotypes were less sensitive to triasulfuron. Four of the least sensitive ecotypes to triasulfuron plus the susceptible standard were selected for a subsequent study. Diclofop, clodinafop, and metribuzin reduced fresh weights by at least 69, 71, and 62% across all ecotypes. No imazamox or triasulfuron treatment reduced fresh weights more than 60%.