Producer Finds Easier Weed Management, Higher Yields In 2022

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Cotton-and-peanut farmer Stephen Dozier says PhytoGen® W3FE varieties make weed management easier on his farm due to the Enlist® weed control system. His average cotton yields increased by triple digits over the previous season when he switched to PhytoGen® brand varieties, and fields with heavy reniform nematode pressure increased yields by several hundred pounds.

A push for something better entails a willingness to change. And change opens the door to better-than-expected success.

That’s what happened for producer Stephen Dozier, who farms about 3,500 acres of cotton and peanuts in Georgia. Dozier previously planted cotton varieties with a dicamba-based herbicide system, but he never felt settled with how that fit with his peanut acres.

“I never really like spraying dicamba because it doesn’t fit well with peanuts. Why would you want to spray something on your cotton that will kill your peanuts? And that goes the other way too,” Dozier said.

In 2021, Dozier planted PhytoGen® brand varieties due to management efficiencies with his peanut crop. PhytoGen® W3FE varieties have the Enlist® cotton trait for labeled applications of Enlist One® and Enlist Duo® herbicides with 2,4-D choline. Peanuts have inherent tolerance to 2,4-Db, a common herbicide used across peanut acres. Because both peanuts and PhytoGen W3FE varieties utilize 2,4-D-based herbicides, there are distinct synergies when planting near one another.

“With PhytoGen W3FE varieties and peanuts, we can spray 2,4-D based products on both crops — it’s a perfect fit.”

Dozier said those benefits made his weed control program more timely and flexible. He recalled one day his peanut sprayer was applying 2,4-Db in a peanut field while his cotton sprayer applied Enlist One in an adjacent field of PhytoGen® brand PHY 443 W3FE. In that situation, he was safe to spray whichever way the wind blew because of compatibility between the surrounding crops.

Another benefit comes with sprayer tank cleanout. If you’re not putting dicamba in your tank for cotton acres, that’s one less thing to worry about when it’s time to make herbicide applications in peanuts. Many growers have found they can use one sprayer for both PhytoGen W3FE varieties and peanuts, eliminating the investment and maintenance of a second spray rig.

“I could definitely use one sprayer for my cotton and peanuts if I wanted to go in that direction,” Dozier said. “Right now, I’m using two sprayers to cover all my acres in a timely manner, but it’s nice not to worry about contamination with dicamba.”

Big Bump In Yields

With success in 2021, Dozier planted 100% of his cotton acres to PhytoGen brand varieties in 2022.

He said he was extremely happy with that decision, yielding a triple-digit improvement over the previous year’s farm average. In addition to the benefits with his peanut crop, he also found that PhytoGen offered varieties with protection against the major pests in his area: reniform and root-knot nematodes.

On fields with heavy reniform nematodes, he made several hundred more pounds per acre compared to competitive varieties. He said PHY 443 W3FE and PhytoGen brand PHY 411 W3FE were both excellent yielders, with PHY 411 W3FE better suited to acres with higher fertility and lighter soils.

“The average yield across my farm is higher than it’s ever been,” Dozier said. “When I showed the results to my banker, he said, ‘Wow, what did you do differently this year?’ Planting 100% PhytoGen is one of the best decisions I have made in years, and I will definitely plant 100% PhytoGen again next season.”

TM ® Trademarks of Corteva Agriscience and its affiliated companies. The Enlist® weed control system is owned and developed by Corteva Agriscience LLC. Enlist Duo® and Enlist One® herbicides are not registered for sale or use in all states or counties. Contact your state pesticide regulatory agency to determine if a product is registered for sale or use in your area. Enlist Duo and Enlist One herbicides are the only 2,4-D products authorized for use with Enlist crops. Consult Enlist herbicide labels for weed species controlled. Always read and follow label directions. Roundup® and Roundup Ready® are trademarks of Bayer Group. ALWAYS READ AND FOLLOW PESTICIDE LABEL DIRECTIONS. Roundup Ready® technology contains genes that confer tolerance to gly- phosate, an active ingredient in Roundup® brand agricultural herbicides. Agricultural herbicides containing glyphosate will kill crops that are not tolerant to glyphosate. Always read and follow label directions. © 2023 Corteva.

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