(Le Mars) — Soybean growers are confused over whether or not they are allowed to use a popular broad-leaf herbicide this year after the U-S 9th Circuit Court of Appeals came out with a ruling this past week. At issue, is the generic herbicide of dicamba. Joel DeJong, Iowa State University Extension and Outreach Crops Specialist for Northwest Iowa says label use was approved four years ago for the products containing dicamba, and including for this year.
DeJong says now is the critical time for the use of the dicamba herbicide for weed control in soybean fields, and he explains the position of the appeals court ruling.
DeJong says the reason for the controversy surrounding dicamba is because it often can vaporize, and with winds it will drift into a neighboring field of soybeans that are not tolerant to the herbicide, and then it causes damage to those soybeans.
The companies that are licensed to market the dicamba herbicide products include: formerly Monsanto, now after acquisition Bayer, BASF, and what was formerly referred to as Dow Agri-Sciences, but now is part of Corteva after the merger with DuPont. DeJong says there is one other dicamba product that was not included as part of the court case.
DeJong says the Environmental Protection Agency hasn’t yet commented on the court’s ruling, and many states, including Iowa Department of Agriculture is telling farmers to go ahead and use the product this year, but be aware the rules may change, and change quickly.
The ISU Extension crops specialist continues with the Iowa Agriculture Department’s current position.
DeJong advises farmers to know what risky crops are surrounding your farm, and to check with your insurance company to see if any liability issues would be covered, since the court has issued its ruling. He says there are some products available on the market that are designed to help reduce the drift factor with dicamba herbicides. DeJong says there are some nozzles for sprayers that are designed to help reduce herbicide drift. Many people have said the timing of the announcement by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals was wrong and ill-timed. DeJong tells farmers to read and follow all label directions when applying any herbicide product.
