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New MSU fact sheet discusses kochia management after harvest
November 19, 2002 -- MSU-Bozeman News Service
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| A stubborn kochia "carpet" can result when kochia plants produce seeds after grain harvest. |
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BOZEMAN—A new publication from Montana State University Extension offers new research findings about post-harvest control of kochia. The four-page MontGuide by James Mickelson of the Southern Agricultural Research Center at Huntley and other MSU weed researchers describes kochia regrowth patterns in small grain fields and gives recommendations for controlling the weeds before they produce seed and establish high-density kochia “carpets.”
Kochia plants that have been cut by a combine do not “tumble”, so they tend to drop all their seed in one spot, producing a thick matt of seedlings the following spring. These dense clumps that emerge are hard to control because their concentrated, carpet-like mass resists effective herbicide coverage said the authors. Cool temperatures also work against herbicides applied in the spring.
MSU researchers conducted trials of 14 herbicide mixtures applied near Huntley, Fort Benton and Havre in mid-August, early September and mid-September. They determined that herbicide should be applied late in August or early in September, when kochia plants are actively growing and have produced enough leaf tissue for herbicide absorption. In the trials, some treatments provided as much as 99 percent reductions in kochia seed production.
For further information, get a free copy of “Post-harvest Kochia Management in Small Grains” (publication no. MT200213) from your local Extension office, or download it from the MSU Extension publications online catalog at http://www.montana.edu/publications.
The Montana State University Extension Service is an educational resource dedicated to improving the quality of people's lives by providing research-based knowledge to strengthen the social, economic and environmental well being of families, communities and agricultural enterprises. For MSU Extension resources on agricultural or other topics, contact your county or reservation Extension office.
Contact: James Mickelson, Ph.D., MSU Southern Ag Research Center (406) 348-3400
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| [View or Download] | 1. | A stubborn kochia "carpet" can result when kochia plants produce seeds after grain harvest. |
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