NO DICAMBA?
HERE’S HOW TO DO THE BEST JOB STOPPING WEEDS IN SOYBEANS IN 2025.
If you’re raising XtendFlex soybeans, you already know that dicamba is not an option this season. Don’t worry, though! You still have every other herbicide option on the table and plenty of ways to attack your weeds.
HERE ARE OUR BEST TIPS TO GET THE TOUGHEST WEEDS UNDER CONTROL.
BURNDOWN
If you liked dicamba in the burndown either right before or right after planting, you’re going to have to change. The label now requires 30 days pre-plant with dicamba. So, what’s the best choice? First of all, the wrong choice is 2,4-D ahead of anything but Enlist soybeans. There’s just too much injury potential. Instead, switch to either Liberty or Gramoxone as your base treatment. Spike in metribuzin and either Valor or Authority. For more kick, add Aim. For all these products, be sure to use the strongest rates your soils will allow.
COVER CROP
If you have been utilizing cover crops, chances are you’ve noticed fewer winter annual weeds and possibly some suppression of the early emergers in the spring, too. Certainly, there are pros and cons with cover crops. If holding back a percentage of weeds is a top priority for you, consider a cover crop, at least on the weediest fields.
3 PRE’S
Pre-plant is always the best way to stop most weeds in any type of soybeans. It keeps weeds from competing for water and nutrients with the crop. It thins out the population of weeds so there aren’t so many to control post-emerge. It buys you a little more time in getting the post-emerge herbicide applied.
We recommend using products from these three modes of action and applying them at full rates, or at least as high as your soil and rotation will allow.
- 1
PPO. Use either Authority or Valor with or without tillage.
- 2
YELLOW. Use either Prowl (in conventional or no-till) or Trifluralin (in conventional tillage).
- 3
METRIBUZIN. Use up to 1/3 of a pound with or without tillage but cut the rate in higher pH ground and avoid use in very sandy soil with low organic matter.
As with all soil residual herbicides, the 3 PRE’s need moisture to work well. While many manufacturers claim a half inch of rain is sufficient for activation, that half inch will very likely give you less than 100% control. One or two inches of rain would be much, much better because we aren’t trying to just “activate” a herbicide. We are trying to get fantastic performance. PRE-PLANT application is always better than spraying after planting. If you want, you can spray these herbicides late in the fall or early in the spring in the northern U.S. Otherwise, right before planting is fine, especially if tillage is an option. Lightly incorporating these products will lead to more consistent control and less rainfall needed for maximum results.
CULTURAL PRACTICES
You can help yourself out by planting higher populations, narrowing your row spacing, choosing bushy varieties, and planting early. All these steps lead to rows closing more quickly and allowing less sunlight for weeds to capitalize on.
NEW TRAIT
Recently, Bayer announced their newest herbicide trait for soybeans called Vyconic. They are expecting to launch these soybeans in 2027. Vyconic will have tolerance to Bayer’s proprietary formulations (and likely those of other manufacturers, as well) of 2,4-D, dicamba, mesotrione, glufosinate, and glyphosate. Those are the active ingredients from Enlist One, XtendiMax, Callisto, Liberty, and Roundup.