INSECTS – Both SmartStax® and SmartStax® PRO provide belowground insect protection with multiple Bt events and a higher rate of seed treatment insecticide. SmartStax® PRO takes it a step further with RNA interference. Keep in mind corn rootworms must take a bite out of the root to receive the Bt’s and the RNAi from SmartStax® PRO. To provide extra protection and to control rootworms and other pests before they bite the seed or roots, consider using an in-furrow insecticide as well, especially in heavy-pressure situations. Products like Capture LFR have come way down in price in recent years and are quite affordable.

POST-EMERGE WEED CONTROL – SmartStax® and SmartStax® PRO hybrids carry herbicide tolerance to both Liberty (glufosinate) and Roundup® (glyphosate), offering more ways to control tough weeds.

USE A PRE – Don’t skip the powerful weed control options you have for residual control. Apply them at – or hopefully before – planting.

PRODUCT CHOICE – If broadleaf weeds are a huge issue, choose a pre-emerge product to address those weeds and take many of them out before they even emerge from the soil. Products like Verdict, SureStart, or TripleFLEX are great options, but there are many more, as well.

MULTIPLE EFFECTIVE MODES OF ACTION – Be sure to use multiple effective modes of action each time you spray for weeds. For example, Status is a great post-emerge choice because of its broad-spectrum weed control and two highly effective modes of action on most weeds. Avoid spraying straight Roundup® or any single mode of action as resistant weeds are out there and growing in severity each year.

DISEASES – Watch the Hefty Brand Corn hybrid characteristics chart on pages 8 and 9 and consult the management tips for each hybrid. Most hybrids have one disease or another that may require extra protection from a fungicide. Many of the diseases will show up in fields after V8 and come during very sensitive growth stages. Avoid the use of surfactants or oils with your pre-tassel fungicide applications or use labeled NPE/APE-free surfactants such as Precisive and Nutex EDA to protect your crop from arrested ear development.

While it doesn’t have quite the power of SmartStax® PRO on corn rootworms, we’ve seen it as a nice step up from the original SmartStax trait in our testing both in above and below-ground insect control. Look for excellent protection against European corn borer, southwestern corn borer, fall armyworm, black cutworm, western bean cutworm, corn earworm, and corn rootworm.

VT4PRO also contains Roundup Ready 2 Technology® allowing you to spray glyphosate in addition to conventional corn herbicides to stop tough weeds.

The Widest Spectrum of Insect Defense From Bayer

With above- and below-ground protection against some of the toughest corn pests, VT4PRO Technology will be a versatile product with a broad geographic fit, helping to provide farmers across the U.S. the protection they need.

The Power of RNAi Technology

Developed by Bayer to combat corn rootworm, RNAi Technology offers a specific mode of action against the pest. Because RNAi Technology works differently than a soil-applied insecticide or Bt traits to control corn rootworm, it can help increase a corn plant’s ability to defend itself against the billion-dollar bug.

INSECTS – Dropping down from SmartStax® to VT Double PRO® means giving up belowground insect protection on pests like corn rootworm. Be sure to use a planting time insecticide like Force, Aztec, or Capture LFR, as there is no rescue treatment for corn rootworm.

WEED CONTROL – If you are used to using Liberty® or Roundup® in SmartStax® corn, remember VT Double PRO® is only tolerant to Roundup, not Liberty.

SEED TREATMENT – Hefty Brand Corn is treated with Hefty Complete Corn Seed Treatment which contains a number of naturals to improve drought and stress tolerance.

BALANCED FERTILITY – Providing balanced and ample fertility allows your crop to lower its water usage required to take up nutrients.

SOIL STRUCTURE – Reducing compaction allows your roots to grow deeper faster in pursuit of water and nutrients.

FOLIAR TREATMENTS – Plant health fungicides as well as Hefty Naturals products like Heat Shield and Weather King can help reduce plant stress during hot, dry weather.

Additional agronomic tips for managing your DroughtGard® corn including following all the management tips from SmartStax® and VTDoublePRO®.

WEED CONTROL – DroughtGard® hybrids feature tolerance to Roundup® herbicide, as well as the conventional corn herbicides you’ve used for years. These hybrids are not tolerant to Liberty® like SmartStax® corn. For more herbicide recommendations, visit the Roundup Ready® corn section.

WEED CONTROL – Trecepta® corn hybrids are tolerant to Roundup herbicides for added
post-emerge grass and broadleaf control.

INSECTS – While the aboveground insect protection Trecepta® provides is fantastic, you will need to apply a planting time insecticide to protect against corn rootworms, grubs, and secondary pests. Insecticides like Capture LFR are effective and have become very inexpensive. Scouting throughout the season is always recommended, as Bt products stop specific insects, but they do not kill all bugs that could possibly be in your fields.

DISEASE – Trecepta® has been shown to help reduce disease pressure in stalks and especially ears by eliminating many of the worst insect pests. Using fungicides to help protect the plants from foliar diseases is still necessary.

FERTILITY – Trecepta® helps allow the ear to fill out to the tip by reducing feeding from insects. Adding fertility around tasseling time with nitrogen, sulfur, and boron can help, too. Soil and plant tissue testing will help you identify which nutrients could help your yields on each acre.

PowerCore® Enlist® corn has three modes of action for protection against above-ground pests including black cutworm, European corn borer, fall armyworm, and southwestern corn borer. PowerCore Enlist corn also features tolerance to multiple herbicides, including glyphosate, glufosinate, 2,4-D choline, and FOPS. All Hefty Brand Seed PowerCore Enlist products will be sold as Refuge Advanced, containing 5% seed without insect protection while still containing the same herbicide tolerance.

Our research team has been working with PowerCore Enlist corn for a number of years and has found it to have competitive top-end yields when compared to other traits and genetics on the market today. The insect protection package is superior to many other Bt combinations on the market. We recommend you try new products on a small scale as you get started. You have our full confidence that PowerCore Enlist corn from Hefty Brand Seed offers excellent yield potential, provides strong above-ground insect protection, and allows more herbicide flexibility than any other corn trait package available today.

WEED CONTROL – Start with a great pre-emerge herbicide program. If broadleaf weeds are your top concern choose a combination broadleaf and grass herbicide to address your toughest weed problem. If grass control is your biggest issue, choose a straight Group 15 herbicide and use it at the full labeled rate. With Roundup as part of your post emerge program, you can inexpensively and effectively clean up almost any annual grass weed.

INSECTS – Utilize in-furrow insecticide. The key with Roundup Ready® corn is to keep the roots healthy and free of insects (and diseases) to improve nutrient uptake, stress tolerance, stability, and overall yield. Unless you’re planting something like VT4PRO™, SmartStax® or SmartStax® PRO, chances are good you need an insecticide. Also, scout regularly for aboveground insects and treat when necessary.

FERTILITY – Consider in-furrow or 2 X 2 starter fertility to boost early performance. Keep rates small and use a low-salt fertilizer.

DISEASE – Adding a fungicide or a combination of insecticide and fungicide when planting early is a good idea. If you are in a heavy disease pressure situation, it won’t hurt to make that investment even when weather conditions are good. Xyway is a strong option for disease protection with a planting-time application. We prefer to see Xyway used in a 2 X 2 or the 3Rive 3D system rather than in-furrow.

MICROBES/SOIL HEALTH – We’ve never seen as good a response from a natural package as we have with Alpha Complete. Try it in-furrow or in your 2 X 2 and see the difference! If you don’t have in-furrow or 2 X 2 capabilities, Maxx NS is a strong alternative. Maxx NS from Hefty Naturals is the best talc-based planter box additive we’ve seen.

HEFTY COMPLETE SEED TREATMENT on your Hefty Brand Corn is a difference-maker, too. Dig some roots up early and throughout the season. Focus on setting your planter so every seed is placed perfectly. Finally, notice how fast your corn gets out of the ground with Hefty Complete!

WEED CONTROL – Without Roundup® or Liberty to help you kill weeds, you have to be smart. Start with a full rate of a Group 15 grass herbicide to stop the most expensive and damaging weeds in corn, namely annual grasses like the foxtail species. Don’t use the weed killers that focus on broadleaf control, which is much cheaper to achieve post-emerge.

INSECTS – Utilize a full rate of an in-furrow insecticide. The key with conventional corn is to keep the roots healthy and free of insects (and diseases) to improve nutrient uptake, stress tolerance, stability, and overall yield. Unless you’re planting something like VT4PRO™, SmartStax®, or SmartStax® PRO, chances are good you need an insecticide. Also, scout regularly for aboveground insects and treat when necessary.

DISEASE – Adding a fungicide or a combination of insecticide and fungicide when planting early is a good idea. If you are in a heavy disease pressure situation, it won’t hurt to make that investment even when weather conditions are good. Xyway is a strong option for disease protection with a planting-time application. We prefer to see Xyway used in a 2 X 2 or the 3Rive 3D system rather than in-furrow.

FERTILITY – Consider in-furrow or 2 X 2 starter fertility to boost early performance. Keep rates small and use a low-salt fertilizer.

MICROBES/SOIL HEALTH – We’ve never seen as good a response from a natural package as we have with Alpha Complete. Try it in-furrow or in your 2 X 2 and see the difference! If you aren’t set up to do that, Maxx NS on your seed is another great option.