Better Winter Wheat Weed Control, More Crop Rotation Options Coming from New Cereals Herbicide
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Crop rotational flexibility is increasingly important as farmers in the northern Plains and Pacific Northwest look to adjust their crop mix to take advantage of commodity market dynamics — especially when those dynamics turn bullish toward pulse crops, like lentils, which are popular cash crops in the two growing regions.
“Some herbicides on the market limit a farmer’s choice of being able to rotate to crops they want to grow because of in-field residual herbicide activity the following season,” says Jesse Lacock, territory manager, Corteva Agriscience. “For the 2025 growing season, farmers can take that rotational limitation off the table by going with Tolvera herbicide.”
Another advantage Tolvera™ herbicide will deliver is ease of use. The emulsifiable concentrate (EC) formulation will put applicators’ minds at ease, because they can go into a cereal field, apply Tolvera herbicide knowing they can get good control of tough broadleaf and grass weeds and have more crop rotational options the next season. The northern Plains and Pacific Northwest are known for producing a lot of diverse crops. Tolvera herbicide is a great fit whether a farmer wants to rotate to chickpeas, lentils or oil seeds.
It also means Corteva customers can rely on one manufacturer, which means they get to participate in grower-facing programs and get more returned value from those programs. Ultimately, Tolvera herbicide could change the way some farmers manage their operations from their herbicide programs to their choice of rotational crops.
“A lot of our Corteva products, whether it’s OpenSky herbicide or Starane Flex herbicide, have excellent rotational flexibility,” Lacock says. “In the 2025 cereal-growing season, Tolvera herbicide will fit right into that portfolio group of products that allows farmers to rotate freely to sensitive broadleaf crops and the power to hammer tough-to-control weeds.”
Troublesome Weeds and Resistance Development
Between kochia, green and yellow foxtail and barnyardgrass, farmers in the northern Plains and the Pacific Northwest need the reliable weed control Tolvera herbicide can deliver.
“In addition to a Group 27 that will control pigeon grass (green foxtail), Tolvera herbicide also brings in a Group 6 to strengthen control of broadleaf weeds,” Lacock says. “Many of the farmers I speak with are eager to add Tolvera herbicide to their weed management and resistance management programs.”
Product ingredients are always an important topic at field days, and this one was no different. Retailers learned about Tolvera herbicide and how it features tolpyralate — an HPPD inhibitor (Group 27) active ingredient new to the cereals market, with less known resistance than some other herbicide groups. Tolpyralate can give farmers excellent control of challenging weeds, including Russian thistle and waterhemp.
“Tolvera herbicide separates itself from other competitor herbicides because of the speed of activity,” says Marcus Weatherhead, strategic account manager, Corteva Agriscience. “It’s been used the last two seasons in Canada, and we’re hearing lots of positives from our counterparts about commercial applications of Tolvera herbicide. I think we actually underestimated the level of control we could have, especially on kochia.”
In 2025, farmers growing cereals will be able to add Tolvera™ herbicide, from Corteva Agriscience, to their herbicide programs for control of troublesome weeds like the ones pictured above.
When discussing application rates, farmers and applicators know higher use rates tend to work better because you have more active ingredient(s) on the field. But trials have shown higher rates may not be needed with Tolvera herbicide.
“The last two years, we’ve run 11- and 14.7-fluid-ounce rates, along with 0.5% methylated seed oil adjuvant, with positive control at the lower labeled rate in the correct spray timing window,” Weatherhead says.
It is critical farmers rotate to different modes of action against problematic weeds to keep from developing resistance against specific weed species. Doing so decreases selection pressure for herbicide resistance and extends the life span of existing herbicide products.
“The nice part about this field day is having these ‘untreated check plots’ to see how big the weeds would have been had they not been sprayed,” Weatherhead says. “It’s a great visual to walk around and see the effectiveness of Tolvera herbicide. Cereal farmers who have chosen Tolvera herbicide have been satisfied with the effectiveness on their tough broadleaf and grass weeds.”
Tolvera™, OpenSky® and Starane® Flex are not registered for sale or use in all states. Contact your state pesticide regulatory agency to determine if a product is registered for sale or use in your state. Always read and follow label directions.
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