A clean, strong start is critical for canola to eliminate weed competition in the early stages of growth. Canola establishment is enhanced with a solid preseed burndown program. It requires more than just glyphosate to get a larger spectrum of weeds and help prevent the spread of herbicide resistant weeds.

Farmers have a choice of herbicides to tank-mix with glyphosate to ensure they have a clean field for their canola to emerge into. Picking the right one depends on a few factors, including the weed spectrum in your field and what herbicide resistant weeds may be present.

While glyphosate (Group 9) resistant weeds are a main focus, grass and broadleaf weeds resistant to Groups 1, 2, 4, and 5 and volunteers from three different canola systems (Group 9, 10 and 2) all need to be controlled in a burndown pass.

It’s important to build a multi-mode-of-action (MMoA) herbicide plan to take care of both resistant and non-resistant weeds. Some excellent tank-mix partners to choose from include Prospect™ (Group 4 and 14), Conquer® II (Group 14 and 6), Certitude® (Group 27 and 6) and Aim® EC (Group 14).

When tank mixed with glyphosate, these burndown herbicides can help you dial-in your weed management program according to specific field conditions. At the same time, it’s critical that farmers pay attention to rotating herbicide groups from year to year to help manage weed resistance going forward.

While a pre-seed burndown plan is one of the first and most important decisions to make when it comes to getting canola off to a strong start, achieving the right plant density (5 to 7 plants per square foot) is also key. Stands that are too thin are vulnerable to greater flea beetle damage and can also lead to increased weed competition later as the crop matures.

Your Customer Account Manager (CAM) can help you choose the best pre-seed burndown herbicide partners and work with you to develop a weed management program that’s right for all of your fields.