Enlist One and Enlist Duo (Enlist One plus glyphosate) just got approved for use in the United States through at least 2028. While this is great news, there are a couple of label changes that I personally don’t like.

⊲ Enlist herbicides are now labeled only through R1 in soybeans, not R2. In my area, R1 (first flower) usually means around the 4th of July. R2 usually goes at least through mid-July. I don’t like the fact that on our farm we will have to quit spraying either Enlist herbicide a full 10 days or more earlier. Corteva says they made this change to “mitigate potential risk to pollinators”.

⊲ Farmers in a few counties will no longer be able to spray Enlist Duo and/or Enlist One due to endangered species present. As an agronomist and farmer, let me give you my personal, unfiltered opinion here. First, I’m in favor of finding a way to protect most endangered species. Second, the active ingredients in these two herbicides are 2,4-D choline and glyphosate. These are not insecticides, so they don’t kill insects. They also will not kill animals, so I do not understand why there are county restrictions. However, I am told that Corteva didn’t want to fight to get the vast majority of the label approved, so they didn’t even ask for a label in those counties. They are instead re-submitting for those counties separately, and hopefully we will see both Enlist Duo and Enlist One labeled for use in soybeans and other crops within the next 6 to 12 months.

There are a few other new things in the updated label, like runoff mitigation, new nozzles that are approved, etc., but the two points above are the main ones that stood out to me.

Now let’s focus on all the good we’ve seen with Enlist One and Enlist Duo. Over the last few years, weed control has been decent. Keep in mind, that the full rate only gives us 1 pound of actual 2,4-D per acre. In pastures, for example, most farmers use 1.5 to 2 pounds of actual 2,4-D per acre. What I’m saying here is you can’t expect miracles out of such a low rate. Will Enlist One or Enlist Duo do a good job on most small broadleaves? Absolutely! Will it take out foot-tall waterhemp, marestail, or giant ragweed? Probably not. As we go west in the U.S., kochia becomes the number one weed on many farms, and 2,4-D has always been weak on kochia, especially at the low rates we’re talking about.

Next, drift and volatility issues have been minimal. While dicamba continues to see problems, the new 2,4-D choline in Enlist One and Enlist Duo has been comparatively amazing. Other than physical drift that can happen with any herbicide if the wind is blowing toward a sensitive crop, I’ve personally seen no issues at all.

This year, the number one question I’ve gotten is from farmers who don’t want to use expensive Liberty. Yes, the full rate of Liberty at 43 ounces per acre is now around $25. Enlist One, on the other hand, is around $10 after Corteva’s 10% rebate. On our farm, for example, we’ll be using what we call the 3 Pre-program pre-emerge – and, if necessary, we’ll be using two shots of Enlist One. Skipping the Liberty for one year in Enlist soybeans is okay. I hate to do it, but I also don’t want to pay $25 per acre for an herbicide. For $25, did you know you can get the 3 Pre’s we talk about PLUS two more modes of action early post if you want to run with Anthem Maxx or Warrant Ultra? What I’m saying is, before I spend $25 on Liberty, I’d invest $25 in 5 different chemistries pre and early-post.

With more acres going to Enlist in soybeans, cotton, and corn, we expect much more Enlist One to be used in 2022. At this point, we’ve seen no supply issues, and most of our stores have everything they need for the entire season. Nevertheless, we encourage you to pick up your product early just to be on the safe side, especially if you are doing the same thing we are considering – spraying Enlist One twice this year rather than once.