Goldacres recently built a sprayer that uses Bilberry’s spot spraying program and is towed by a SwarmFarm Robotics platform.

Finding green on green and dead where it needs to be

Spot spraying: Reliably identifying green weeds among a green crop has long been a goal for spot spraying herbicides

Glacier FarmMedia – There’s a race to build computer programs that instantly differentiate weeds from crops within images taken by sprayer-boom mounted cameras. Green-on-brown spraying, where cameras identify plants on brown soil background for burndown applications, has been around for at least 15 years. Weed-It, John Deere See & Spray Select and Amazone AmaSpot can […] Read more

Fields can present with a type of herbicide injury, but the symptoms can be mimicked by non-herbicide injury sources like root-lesion nematode infestations in this photo.

Herbicide injury rising in potato fields

Knowledge and preventative management can mitigate most instances

The source of potato herbicide injury isn’t always easy to pin down, especially when the usual suspects aren’t the guilty ones.  During a recent Ontario Potato Board webinar, Andy Robinson, extension potato agronomist at North Dakota State University/University of Minnesota (NDSU/UMN,) said pinpointing how herbicides came into contact with a plant is often a challenge […] Read more

Improperly cleaned spray booms create a V-shaped pattern of crop damage when starting a new field requiring a different herbicide.

Recirculating booms can help slow spread of herbicide-resistant weeds

AGCO demonstrated value of new sprayer tech on a crop tour

Glacier FarmMedia – Just a few years ago, herbicide resistance in weeds seemed like a distant concern, something occurring elsewhere. However, it should be no surprise to anyone that today the International Survey of Herbicide-Resistant Weeds, which is a collaborative effort between weed scientists in more than 80 countries, says that is no longer true. […] Read more

Being able to spray weeds like redroot pigweed early without spraying an entire field could help reduce costs for farmers.

Canadian weed sensing project could mean targeted spraying

Pesticides sprayed with more precision could reduce farmer costs and build consumer confidence in products

Glacier FarmMedia – A project that will examine the use of artificial intelligence to detect weeds and crop pests during passes over a field received a $12.8 million investment from Protein Industries Canada. Led by Precision.ai., Sure Growth Solutions Inc., Exceed Grain Marketing and the Global Institute for Food Security, the project is designed to […] Read more

Can icons simplify chemical labels?

Can icons simplify chemical labels?

Experts argue an internationally used set of icons could make labels easier to update and understand

Glacier FarmMedia – Judging a herbicide by its label can sometimes be as difficult as judging a book by its cover, especially if you’re reading product labels on your tiny smartphone screen. The Pest Management Regulatory Agency database on labels is made up of PDF files, which are often difficult to use when projected on […] Read more


Waterhemp is a cross-pollinating species, which improves its ability to develop herbicide resistance.

Weed of the week: Waterhemp

The challenging weed rapidly develops resistance, so rotating herbicides is critical

Waterhemp can be controlled through a variety of approaches, but identification is often difficult. The weed — a non-native member of the pigweed family first discovered in Lambton County in 2002 – is an annual plant producing tens of thousands of seeds every year. It features narrow leaves, wavy leaf margins, and (almost completely) hairless […] Read more

Glyphosate has become the most commonly used herbicide in the world, especially because of herbicide-resistant crops like soybeans.

Using glyphosate wisely

Glyphosate breaks down in the soil but buildup is shown to affect phytoplankton

Researchers from the University of Quebec say farmers might want to use glyphosate more sparingly — and for reasons beyond herbicide resistant weeds. Why it matters: Glyphosate may be comparatively benign, but overuse can still raise agronomic and environmental concerns. Presenting at the Innovative Farmers Association of Ontario’s annual conference, Marc Lucotte, research chair with […] Read more

Black-grass rising over and above a barley crop.

Using technology to pinpoint problem weeds

U.K. researchers create inexpensive, in-field herbicide resistance test tool

Britain’s island geography has been a major barrier for invading forces throughout history, but it’s not so effective at stopping the spread of invasive weeds. That’s why United Kingdom researchers have developed an inexpensive, convenient tool to help farmers identify resistant weeds, specifically black grass, as early as possible. Black-grass is to the U.K. what […] Read more


Bayer’s short season corn will only grow to about seven feet tall.

Bayer announces new herbicide mode of action

The broadleaf herbicide will be the first new mode of action in 30 years

A new herbicide molecule, a different approach to short stature corn and XtendFlex soybeans are three projects in the Bayer CropScience development pipeline that could have an impact on farms. Why it matters: There is increasing resistance to current herbicides so a new mode of action will be welcome. Bayer announced the new herbicide and […] Read more

Developed by Pentair Hypo in conjunction with BASF, the Easyconnect Closed Transfer System totally seals the jug to the hopper so not a single drop can escape.

Easyconnect seals chemical transfer

A specially designed fill valve creates a sealed connection with a chemical container

Glacier FarmMedia – It’s not often we see major crop protection companies work together on technology, but that’s what’s happening as they develop a new universal closed transfer system (CTS) for chemicals. The CTS Easyconnect consists of a specially designed fill valve that creates a sealed connection between the CTS and the chemical container. The […] Read more