At a cost of just under £3/ha and delivering between 5% and 8% additional control, Agrii agronomist Billy Hosdell says that the adjuvant, Backrow, is the cheapest black-grass control you can buy.
For the heavy, low-lying clay soils that dominate his base in East Yorkshire, he says that “pre-emergence flufenacet-based herbicides are the backbone of autumn weed control here. However, to add the same levels of control from additional pre-ems as you can from Backrow, could cost you £7-10/ha more and would add further ‘heat’ on the crop. Some data has also shown that Backrow reduces phytotoxicity from hot pre-em mixes.”
He advises the inclusion of 0.2l/ha with every pre-em that’s applied.
Interagro’s Sarah Ferrie says that the specialist adjuvant oil has been specifically developed with pre-ems and grassweeds in mind.
“In wheat, we’ve recorded an average of 7% improvement in black-grass control when applied with a range of flufenacet containing herbicides, including Crystal, Liberator, Liberator + Defy and Vigon in 88% of situations across 41 trials in three contrasting years,” she explains.
“Pre-emergence herbicide applications can be particularly challenging because you need to achieve good even herbicide coverage on the soil surface to control germinating weeds. Backrow is the perfect addition to the spray programme because it reduces the number of driftable fines and improves spray deposition, resulting in more uniform coverage of spray droplets.” she says.
“Delivery of full dose to the target is absolutely crucial to optimise efficacy, and in that respect, Backrow is a valuable tool which also aids the retention of the herbicide in the top 5cm of the soil profile where it is needed to control germinating black-grass.”
Backrow must be added to the water in the spray tank before any other products. It can be used with residual herbicides in winter and spring cereals, beans, linseed, maize, oilseed rape, peas, potatoes, sugar beet and vegetable crops.
