Looking back
Many areas of the country experienced periods of warm weather and heavy rainfall over winter. These conditions can result in reduced persistency and effectiveness of residual chemistry in the soil. Heavy rainfall has also broken down cloddy soils, releasing new flushes of weeds that are germinating above any residual layers.
Looking forward
Now is the time to start planning post-emergence herbicide applications. For cereal crops, it’s about prioritising the control of difficult grass weeds such as ryegrass, wild oats and brome species.
As the days lengthen and crops start thinking about waking up, there may be some early opportunities for weed control, especially on lighter soils in the east of the country.
Weather at this time of year is often fast moving and unpredictable. Spray windows that look unlikely, can suddenly appear and may be very localised, as we saw in spring 2023 and 2024. Some of the best results can be achieved by seizing these early opportunities when weeds are still small.
Getting optimal performance from a herbicide involves balancing a number of variables. We cannot control the weather nor the ability to travel. However, making sure a product is available on farm and ready to go should be on the minds of growers and agronomists if they want to take advantage of any early spray windows.
Applications to cereals in early February may seem early, but conditions can change quickly, and application windows do appear, so utilising them can contribute huge gains in terms of product performance.
Targeting small weeds early is often a better option than waiting, as the weeds may be larger, growing faster and by the time a later spray window appears, may be more difficult to control.
It is a fine balance, and a field specific judgment is required when deciding to spray or hold out for new flushes and better conditions without compromising on control.
Flexible and reliable pyroxsulam containing products such as Broadway® Star or new Broadway® Ultra should form the backbone of these programmes, giving excellent control of bromes, ryegrass, wild oats and a range of difficult broad-leaved weeds.
Broadway Ultra:
Having a new tool in the toolbox for grass weed control is rare, and one that controls a range of grass weeds, including meadow grass, plus a wide spectrum of some of the more difficult broad-leaved weeds, is even rarer. Broadway Ultra, a new addition to the Broadway family, does all of this and is available for use this spring.
Broadway Ultra can be used in winter wheat and winter triticale from the 1st of January. Used at a dose rate of 100g/ha in combination with an approved adjuvant, it delivers 14 grams active ingredient per hectare of both pyroxsulam and mesosulfuron-methyl.
Pyroxsulam is well known to growers as the backbone of other Broadway products, providing excellent and reliable grass weed control, as well as capturing a wide spectrum of broad-leaved weeds. It is one of the few ALS graminicides to bring in difficult broad-leaved species such as speedwells, mayweeds and umbellifers such as bur chervil.
The other component, mesosulfuron, another common grass weed active ingredient, when combined with pyroxsulam, brings a synergistic effect on grass weed species. Both are ALS inhibitors, but come from two different ALS families. Mesosulfuron is a sulfonyl-urea, whereas pyroxsulam belongs to the triazolopyrimidine herbicide group.
In partnership, they offer the strongest combination for post-emergence grass weed control available.
Mesosulfuron brings in some broad-leaved weeds, namely chickweed, sow thistle and shepherds’ purse, but most importantly, completes the spectrum with leading meadow grass control.
Broadway Ultra has an impressive range of uses, including broad-spectrum grass weed control where meadow grass is a key driver. It is effective in traditional rotations on organic or lighter soils that naturally have high meadow grass and broad-leaved weed pressure. Additionally, it is beneficial for wheat crops following late-harvested beet or potatoes, where residual herbicides may not have been applied or have performed badly.
With excellent crop safety, a wide range of ALS tank-mix and sequence options and a broad range of tested tank-mix compatibilities, Broadway Ultra is a flexible product that will be invaluable to growers in many on farm situations.
Related article: A deeper dive into the new Broadway® Ultra herbicide which will debut on farms this spring. Includes key technical information Read more here.