Recent hail storms have affected wheat stands in some areas of Kansas. The resulting thin stands in some areas, along with the abundant rains in May, have caused weeds to start showing up in many wheat fields — especially in fields not treated earlier. When broadleaf weeds are given the opportunity to grow rapidly in wheat fields because of wet weather and open canopies at the end of the growing season, these weeds flourish and often grow above the wheat canopy. This raises several potential concerns, including harvest difficulties, dockage problems, weed seed production, and soil water depletion. No one wants to spend extra money on a below-average crop, but it may be necessary.
Unfortunately, there aren’t many good options at this point in time. There are also a lot of questions about which herbicides are approved and the “use guidelines and restrictions” for pre-harvest treatments in wheat. Listed below are the various herbicide options producers can use as pre-harvest aids in wheat. There are differences in how quickly they act to control the weeds, the interval requirement between application and grain harvest, and the level or length of control achieved.
All of them will require good thorough spray coverage to be most effective. Please note that the 2,4-D rate approved for pre-harvest weed control in wheat has been reduced to a maximum of 0.5 lb/acre, which is equal to 1 pt of a 4-lb formulation or 2/3 pt of a 6-lb material. 2,4-D also has a 14-day pre-harvest requirement.
Another herbicide that is sometimes mentioned as a possible pre-harvest treatment is paraquat. Paraquat is not labeled for pre-harvest treatment in wheat. Application of paraquat to wheat is an illegal treatment and can result in a quarantine and destruction of the harvested grain, along with severe fines.
It is very difficult to estimate the value of preharvest weed treatments as it will depend in part on the differences a treatment would have on harvest efficiency and dockage. It may not pay to treat wheat with lower weed densities unless harvest is delayed. If the weeds are about to set seed, a preharvest treatment can go a long way toward reducing weed problems in future years by preventing seedproduction.
