There aren’t a lot of new or fairly new pesticides for use in wheat, but here are my favorites over the last couple years, listed in no particular order.
HUSKIE FX
Adding the active ingredient from Starane to the old Huskie (Buctril plus HPPD) has shored up one of the few perceived broadleaf weaknesses of Huskie. Personally, I always thought Huskie was pretty good on kochia, but for an extra couple bucks to step up to Huskie FX, kochia doesn’t stand a chance. The only reason I would
use old Huskie is if I had no kochia. If supply is good enough this year, we should see most people switching to Huskie FX. Cost is $11 to $12 before rebates, but keep in mind Bayer Plus could pay as much as $6 per acre.
WIDEARMATCH
Adding the active ingredient from Elevore to the old WideMatch (Stinger plus Starane) eliminates the need to spike 2,4-D or another herbicide in with WideMatch in most cases. WideMatch was great on thistles and kochia but pretty weak on most other broadleaves. Elevore is in the same chemical family as 2,4-D, and while it isn’t quite as broad-spectrum as 2,4-D, it’s not bad, and that active ingredient is much easier on wheat than old 2,4-D. In 2023, there will likely be a shortage on Stinger and anything containing Stinger, so supplies of old WideMatch and WideARMatch won’t be overly abundant, but there should be enough to treat most acres. WideARMatch only costs a dollar or two more than WideMatch, so if you can get your hands on WideARMatch, that’s the direction I would go. Cost is around $8 per acre after Corteva’s 10% rebate program.
PROSARO PRO
When Miravis Ace came out, I was skeptical of how effective that SDHI fungicide could be on fusarium head blight (head scab), but it has been great. What we’ve seen out of Prosaro Pro so far has looked even better. Prosaro Pro contains three chemistries and two modes of action. Folicur and Proline are the triazoles that made up the old Prosaro. Adding an SDHI active ingredient from Luna) makes Prosaro Pro special. Cost is $14 to $19 before Bayer’s rebate program.
SPHAEREX
Combining the actives from Caramba and Proline, both triazoles, Sphaerex is a good option at heading, with activity on fusarium head blight and a number of other diseases. Cost is about $10 to $14.
AGGRESSOR HERBICIDE
For use only in wheat with the Axigen trait, Aggressor is a phenomenal grass herbicide. It contains the same active ingredient in Assure II that has been applied in soybeans and other crops for more than two decades. This product is strong on annual grasses, including foxtails, annual brome species, rye, wild oats, volunteer cereals, and jointed goatgrass. However, it is a Group 1, so it will not kill ACCase-resistant grasses. Cost is $12 to $19.
REZUVANT
This is one of my favorites as it combines the actives from the old Axial plus Starane plus Elevore with almost no rotational restrictions. Many farmers are looking for a one-pass option, and while I still prefer split applications when there is heavy weed pressure, this is a great choice if you have relatively light grass pressure along with some broadleaves including kochia. If you have a broadleaf disaster in your fields, I’d rather see you run with Huskie FX or WideARMatch. Cost is around $17.
TERAXXA
This is the only product on the market that actually kills wireworms to prevent feeding and reduce the wireworm population. The neonicotinoid insecticides (Poncho, Gaucho, Cruiser) simply repel wireworms. Unfortunately, Teraxxa is pretty much a wireworm-only product, but if that’s the issue on your farm you will love this seed treatment option. Teraxxa is available individually or in a premix with other seed treatment fungicides, and it’s fairly inexpensive.