Best Practices for Maximizing Enlist® Herbicide Efficiency

Weed control in soybeans begins with seed selection. The CROPLAN® soybean lineup offers various herbicide-tolerant traits. Enlist E3® soybeans are popular for their tolerance to 2,4-D choline, glyphosate, and glufosinate, providing flexibility for weed control.

Managing Enlist E3 acres this season? Here are the key elements to consider.

1. Evaluate Your Weed Spectrum

The initial step involves assessing your weed spectrum. Weeds appear at various times, so it is important to identify what needs to be targeted and when. Winter annual weeds, such as Canada fleabane, emerge in the fall or early spring and must be controlled early in the season. For the Enlist system, it is important to apply a timely burndown or pre-emergence herbicide to control these weeds.

Warm-season annual weeds, such as waterhemp, require a different management approach. These weeds typically do not emerge until after the usual spring burndown or early-season postemergence timing and you will need to plan a mid-season application around late June. This may involve considering the combination of Enlist with glufosinate.

The effectiveness of your weed control program largely depends on the specific weed spectrum present in your fields. It is important to carefully monitor and align your Enlist applications with the appropriate weed growth timings to maximize their potential effectiveness.

2. Set Your Herbicide Timing

Once you know your weed spectrum, you can start thinking about when you’ll apply Enlist and with which tank-mix partners. Here are a few examples:

a. Spring burndown application

For effective control of winter annual weeds, consider applying a spring burndown. In the Enlist system, this tank mix commonly includes Enlist 1 combined with glyphosate plus a water conditioner. When tank mixed with glyphosate or glufosinate, Crimson® NG will help tie up any free cations for better performance.

b. First post-emergence application

A popular tank mix for the first post-emergence application is Enlist 1 plus glyphosate. A water conditioner plus a drift-and-deposition aid are important adjuvants to include in this pass. For volunteer corn control, you can add a product like Anter® 360 Unpacked or Antler® 240 herbicide. If you do this, including an oil adjuvant is important if this additional product is used.

With a product like StrikeLock® adjuvant, you can get both your drift control and oil component in one. Just be sure to include an oil adjuvant and increase your rate of Antler 360 by 33% to overcome antagonism with 2,4-D in the tank.

c. Second post-emergence application

At this point, typically around late June, you may be targeting waterhemp and other warm-season annuals. For this application, Enlist 1 plus glufosinate is an effective option. Again, for adjuvants it is important to include a water conditioner with AMS like Crimson NG plus a drift-and-deposition aid.

3. Choose Your Adjuvant Package

With weed spectrum identified and herbicide timing set, it’s time to lock in your specific adjuvants. Many growers still overlook the importance of a quality adjuvant, but it is essential for maximizing herbicide effectiveness. Without the right adjuvant, performance can be disappointing.

a. Water Conditioner

The most important adjuvant to use with glyphosate is a water conditioner like Crimson NG. Crimson NG reduces hard water tie-up allowing your herbicide to remain effective when it hits its intended target.  When applying Enlist 1, it is typically tank mixed with glyphosate or glufosinate, both weak acid herbicides that benefit from AMS.  Crimson NG adjuvant allows the post emergence herbicides used with Enlist 1 to be the most effective, including volunteer corn herbicides.

b. Drift and Deposition Aid

The Enlist system requires extra coarse droplets, which are larger than those typically run with flat fan nozzles. Therefore, it is important to include an adjuvant that improves coverage. InterLock® is excellent at reducing drift and improving coverage of the intended target. The more droplets you can get to the plant, sticking to the leaf and spreading across the surface, the better performance you’ll get from your herbicide program.

At the end of the day, when it comes down to a really great Enlist adjuvant package; it’s a baseline of Crimson NG plus Interlock adjuvant.

Enlist E3 soybeans hold great performance potential. These recommendations aim to help you achieve more successful weed control so you can get more from your genetic investment. To further refine your management plan, contact your local WinField United Independent Ag Retailer.