With many HERBICIDES down substantially in price, you can use higher rates and tankmix partners to get better control – AND THIS MAY COME AT NO HIGHER TOTAL PRICE THAN YOU PAID IN 2026!!
Below are a few other things you can do to SAVE MONEY, GET BETTER RESULTS WITH HERBICIDES… OR BOTH!
By the end of October, I will have bought everything we need for our farm for the upcoming season in terms of seed and crop protection products, and I encourage you to do the same.
HERE‘S WHY.
One of the most important factors when it comes to buying products far ahead of when you need them is price protection. Basically, you can’t lose. This year, we are again able to price protect you on ALL ag chem products through April 2027, with the exception of glyphosate. What I’m saying is if our price goes down, you get the lower price PLUS a little extra based on how far back you prepaid. You can’t get that with fertilizer, which is why fertilizer purchase timing is always a little risky. With ag chem purchasing timing, now is when you should buy. You get guaranteed lower prices in the fall compared to spring.
Hopefully they won’t, but with that threat still out there, buying sooner rather than later is a good idea, especially since you have price protection when you buy (see point #1).
Remember just a few years ago when most ag chemical products cost two to three times as much? It is unlikely, but that could happen again. I’d buy now.
We will always encourage you to work with your local bank. My grandpa and his brother owned a couple of banks way back in the 1970s, and local banks are important to communities. That said, many manufacturers are offering 0% APR financing right now through select ag retailers. These offers primarily run through three huge lenders: JDF (John Deere Financial), DLL (formerly Rabo), and AgraLend (Farm Credit Services).
Our suggestion is to sign up today for all three. It costs nothing to sign up, and that way when you get ready to buy/finance, it will be an easy process. Plus, by signing up for all three, you could effectively triple your credit line. Regardless of which lender it runs through, our advice is to utilize these 0% APR programs now. While there will still be cheap financing in the spring, you will then pay spring prices instead of paying fall prepay prices like you can right now.
NEXT, LET’S LOOK AT A FEW EXAMPLES OF PRODUCT SELECTION AND TIMING FOR BETTER WEED CONTROL AND FINANCIAL SAVINGS.
MY BIGGEST TIP ON SAVING MONEY IS TO USE A PRE. Sharpen pre is less expensive than Huskie Fx post. Pre-Pare is much less expensive than Axial Bold or Huskie Complete. Zidua is way, way down in price, and if you have tough weeds like Italian ryegrass, you’ll probably spend more money than what Zidua costs attempting to get control post-emerge with little success. I’m not saying you can always eliminate your post pass when you use a pre, although that does happen sometimes, but if you want better weed control and improved yields, it all starts by using a pre-emerge herbicide. There are some great ones, and they’re inexpensive.
SPRAY AT LEAST THREE RESIDUAL MODES OF ACTION BEFORE PLANTING! When you spray that early, control will be better since there will be more time to get adequate rain. Plus, when you spray pre-plant, you don’t have to worry about getting the spraying done before the soybeans emerge. Pre-plant is the only timing for Trifluralin and Prowl, and using one of those two saves money and improves weed control versus alternatives.
Did you know that roughly 40% of pre-emerge soybean herbicides get returned each year? Many farmers have great intentions, but the spraying never happens. Apply your soybean pre ahead of planting. If you don’t get the pre out there, you’ll spend more money trying to control weeds post-emerge in soybeans, and you’ll be far less happy with the results. By the way, the 3 Pre’s we always talk about include metribuzin, either Valor or Authority, and then a yellow like I mentioned already above. If you want to try a few acres of the new Convintro for waterhemp, add that to the mix.
WE STILL RECOMMEND USING THE INEXPENSIVE PRODUCTS, namely Callisto (or another HPPD), Roundup, and atrazine despite widespread resistance issues and poor performance on a few weed species. For most weeds, these three herbicides help. However, you’re going to need at least two other herbicides for best results. Pre-emerge, we love Harness (works with less rainfall) or Zidua (lasts longer than any other Group 15) along with Sharpen. Post-emerge, you’ll get the best control on waterhemp and kochia with Status.
ALMOST ALL THE PRODUCTS I MENTIONED HERE IN THIS CORN SECTION ARE DOWN IN PRICE.
Our agronomists spend about 10% of their time in training. The reason we invest so much of our people’s time in this is so when you’re trying to figure out how to get great weed control (or disease control or insect control), they can help you make the most cost-effective decisions. There are literally hundreds of products to choose from now, so it takes a lot of effort to stay current on all the best choices.
AT MANY AG RETAILERS TODAY, THEY’RE TRYING TO CUT THEIR COSTS BY REDUCING INVENTORY AND CARRYING PRODUCTS FROM ONLY A COUPLE MANUFACTURERS.
AT HEFTY’S, WE CARRY PRETTY MUCH EVERYTHING, AND WE WORK WITH ALMOST EVERY AG CHEMICAL MANUFACTURER OUT THERE!
We’re much more concerned with keeping your costs down than ours; and when we carry everything, you don’t have to worry that our agronomists are trying to sell you something just because it’s in the shed. This is what I always tell our people: “When you work at Hefty’s, your number one job is not sales, it’s to help farmers make more money. As long as you put the customer first and recommend the best thing for their situation, which sometimes means selling them nothing, we’ll turn out just fine in the long run.” I know the farm economy is not great today, but we’re here to help.