Herbicide basics for food plots

Alpha Doe

Member

  1. NON SELECTIVE HERBICIDE

    Glyphosate (41%)
    Trade Names
    Roundup
    Numerous Generics Available

    Post Emergence herbicide NON-SELECTIVE which means it kills everything that does not have a resistant gene (like roundup ready corn, soybean etc..) or some glyphosate resistant weeds like pig weed.

    Mix and Application: (based on 41%)
    2 quarts/acre for total kill - You will need to know how much area your sprayer will cover with its capacity of water
    For spot spraying 3oz of 41% per gallon will work great.

    Notes:
    It is soil inert so there is no need to wait before replanting.

    To increase the effectiveness of GLY you can add AMS (Ammonium Sulfate) AMS is a powder and very inexpensive. It is important to add the AMS to the water BEFORE adding the GLY otherwise the AMS will have a reduced effectiveness.
    Here are 2 articles on the reasons for using AMS if you would like further reading:
    http://farmprogress.com/story-why-us...rbicide-9-4108
    http://pods.dasnr.okstate.edu/docush...2/PSS-2783.pdf
    __________________________________


    SELECTIVE HERBICIDES

    Sethoxydim
    Trade Names
    POAST – 18% Sethoxydim
    POAST PLUS 13% Sethoxydim
    Vantage 13% Sethoxydim
    Arrest (Whitetail Institute) 13%
    Hi-Yield Grass Killer 13% Sethoxydim

    Post Emergence SELECTIVE grass killer will not harm clover and chicory. If food plots have chicory do not use a crop oil

    Mix and application: Must be mixed with crop oil or other adjuvant for best results.

    Notes: Noticeable results are not immediate and may take 2-3 weeks.


    ____________________________
    Clethodim

    Generally the lowest cost grass selective herbicide on the market.

    Trade Names:
    Tide, Clethodim 2EC, Arrow, Dakota, Arrest (Whitetail Institute has switched to clethodim)

    Post Emergence SELECTIVE grass killer. Will not harm clover and chicory

    Mix and application:
    6-16 oz per acre per season. Must use crop oil or other adjuvant for best results!! Noticeable results are not immediate and may take 2-3 weeks.
  2. http://tide-usa.com/wp-content/uploa...d-20110503.pdf

    Notes: prices as of July 2016: Rural King 2.5 gallon jug $115.00. Rural King 1 gallon jug $50.00. Keystone Pest 2.5 gallon jug $169.95. Keystone Pest 1 gallon jug $69.95
    ______________________________
    2, 4-D
    (Dimethylamine Salt of 2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic Acid) 11.84%
    Trade Names:

    Post Emergence SELECTIVE herbicide Controls broadleaf weedss – Will kill clover and Chicory but will not harm grasses.

    Mix and application:

    Common Food Plot Usage:
    Sometimes used in conjunction with glyphosate for initial burn down of a food plot. Some broad leaf plants have developed a tolerance to glyphosate. Also commonly used in lawns to kill everything except grass.

    Notes:
    Has a couple week residual in the soil. So you should wait before replanting.

    ___________________________
    2, 4-DB

    Trade Names
    Butyrac 200

    Mix and application: mix Butyrac at 1-3 qrts per acre. Non-ionic surfactant may be added for increased weed control but may cause temporary injury to crop. Read the label for weed size and recommend rates for each.

    Common Food Plot Usage:
    Butyrac 200 2,4-DB Broadleaf Weed Killer Herbicide - will kill your annual broadleaf weeds, but will not kill your perennial legumes such as clover, alfalfa, and trefoil. Will kill or control some pretty tough weeds such as smartweed, some thistles and pigweed.

    Notes: Butyrac 200 (2-4 DB) can be purchased through Keystone Pest for $44.95/gallon. Keystone also sells 2.5 gallon jugs but they are higher in cost at $50.00 per gallon.
  3. __________________________
  4. Raptor


    Raptor herbicide is a post-emergent Grass control in Alfalfa, Clover, Chicory and many other related crops in the Deer Food Plot family. It is an improved product over Slay Herbicide and is much cheaper per acre! Apply Raptor post emergence when weeds are actively growing and small. An ADJUVANT & NITROGEN FERTILIZER must be added to the spray solution for optimum weed control. When Rator is applied post emergence, it will also have some soil residual for extended control of susceptible weeds that may emerge shortly after application. Rates for Raptor are 4-6 oz per acre. One gallon will treat between 21-32 acres.

    Raptor herbicide kills a wide variety of Broadleaf Weeds, Grasses and Sedges including Smartweed.

    Raptor will hurt the wallet @ $580.00 per gallon but small amounts are used so a gallon goes along way. There are alternatives: Clearcast herbicide has the same active ingredients as Raptor but is distibuted for use in aquatic applications. We use the Raptor label for instructions.



  5. _____________________________

    Clearcast Aquatic Herbicide (replacement for Raptor)
    Same Active ingredient as Raptor Herbicide.

    Clearcast Herbicide is running about $300.00 per gallon at Keystone Pest.

    Clearcast Herbicide is a selective herbicide that will control floating, emerged and shoreline weed species while allowing desirable plants to colonize. Clearcast is ideal for aquatic areas used for fishing and other recreation activities, while minimal irrigation restrictions allow Clearcast to be applied in a large variety of aquatic environments, including golf course ponds and irrigation canals and ditches.

    How It Works
    As Clearcast is absorbed through the leaves, stems and roots of vegetation, it binds with an enzyme found only in plants, and not found in humans, mammals, birds, fish or insects. Sensitive plants stop growing within 24 hours after treatment, and then slowly break down as food and energy reserves are exhausted. The rate at which plants age varies with plant size and growth habit. Clearcast has a very favorable environmental profile, and is classified as practically nontoxic to birds, fish, algae and aquatic invertebrates. It’s the only herbicide on the market that has been granted a tolerance exemption by the EPA, which means there are no food residue limits for Clearcast in fish, shellfish, crustaceans or irrigated crops. http://www.cdms.net/ldat/ld7J8000.
____________________
 
Last edited:
I would also add that Clethodim is also sold under the names of Arrow and Dakota. Unbelievably, being from NY they won't sell or ship Cleth to NY so I use the others.
 
Thanks Alpha Doe. That info is priceless. I can't imagine the time, money and bad results I would have had without all of LC's herbicide knowledge.
 
Pursuit

Trade names:
Thunder, Slay (Whitetail Institute)

Applications:
Kills a variety of broadleaf weeds, grasses and supresses sedges. Adjuvant is required along with some sort of fertilizer solution such as AMS. Can be used post emergence on clovers, beans, alfalfa at 3-6 oz per acre. Can be used pre emergence in some applications. Safe on the following native grasses, Big Blue, little blue and switch grass at 4 oz. per acre. Controls mustards, pigweed, smartweed, foxtail and many others.

Notes:
Thunder seems to be the cheapest at Keystone Pest @ $349.95 per gallon. For the same amount of Whitetail Institute's Slay herbicide would cost $1,600.00. Small amounts of Slay can be purchased from Whitetail Institute for those of you that have small plots that you will only spray one time. Slay in the 4 oz bottle is $50.00 / acre or in the pint $150.00 / 4 acres. The 1 gallon jug will cover approximately 32 acres.
 
Last edited:
In my price shopping today I ran across a couple of interesting things...

Whitetail Institute used to use the more expensive sethoxydim as the active ingredient in their grass killer Arrest. They have switched to the cheaper (but better in my opinion) clethodim. I believe their price is the same as it has been for several years @ 1 acre $40.00 or 4 acres for $138.96. Rural King price is 1 gallon of Clethodim for $50.00 + $12.41 shipping plus $3.31 tax for a total of $65.77. Depending on the rate you decide to use ( I use about 8 oz per acre) 1 gallon will cover at least 16 acres or about $4.11 per acre. To cover those same 16 acres with Arrest it would cost $640.00 or $40.00 per acre. Now there are some differences. I believe Arrest comes loaded with crop oil, so you wouldn't need to purchase the oil. Also, Whitetail Institute makes a very generous offer of free shipping.

Whitetail Institute's broadleaf herbicide Slay, is the same as Thunder Herbicide. Thunder herbicide price is $349.95 per gallon plus shipping ( my shipping was $16.35) at a rate of 4 oz per acre one gallon will cover 32 acres or $11.44 per acre (plus a little extra for tax) Slay price is $50.00 per acre or at that price $1,600.00 for the same 32 acres. Slay, if bought in the 4 acre size (1 pint ) is a little cheaper than the 4 oz. size. ( better not spill any!)
 
Last edited:
Thanks for the post Alpha Doe. Good to see you on here posting. I second the Rural King Cleth. They can mail it to me cheaper than I can buy it anywhere locally.
 
I have a lot of broadleaf weeds in my clover plot. Is 2-4DB the best herbicide to use? Could I use just 2-4D?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Last edited:
2-4D will kill clover. Depending on the weeds, 2-4DB is an option. Best bet is to identify the weeds then look at the weeds controlled list for the herbicide.
 
I've been looking but can't seem to find it, what does Rural King charge for shipping?

Sent from my SM-N910V using Tapatalk
 
I know were talking herbicides here but I believe that mowing is a great choice for broadleaf weeds over herbicides. In fact I usually never apply herbicides to clover, as periodic mowing invigorates the clover and controls broadleaf weeds. If grass gets to be a real problem, Clethodim is a good choice but, if you're having huge grass problems you need to look at your soil as that could be the root cause. 2-4D will do a number on the clover so not the best choice but, in reality it's very hard to kill established clover. I've sprayed a high rate of 2-4 D and Gly on white clover, tilled it under and in 2 years the plot was right back to where it was. My point being, try mowing for broadleafs it works good. Don't mow (or spray for that matter) if the clover is in a stress period. It's sometimes hard to watch weeds growing in your plot and you can't do anything because the clover is under stress but, it will at some point come back and then you can go after the weeds.
 
Good point regarding mowing. My farm is an old cattle farm so Bermuda grass is a problem that mowing wont help. Cleth about has it gone, or at least under control. Another weed we have is horsenettle. Mowing every 3 weeks or so would suppress it but I get great satisfaction smoking it with raptor (beyond/clearcast).
 
Mowing is a great option for many broadleaf weeds, unless it is something like smartweed. Mowing also works great if the clover is growing strong and able to compete against regrowth of the broadleaf weed. You are best off knowing what weeds you are facing.
 
I've been looking but can't seem to find it, what does Rural King charge for shipping?

Sent from my SM-N910V using Tapatalk
I believe it is based on location. You may have to go through most of the order steps, it will tell you just short of placing the order.
 
I've been looking but can't seem to find it, what does Rural King charge for shipping?

Sent from my SM-N910V using Tapatalk
I found the area where Rural King will give a shipping and tax quote. If you go to the item page that shows "add to cart" just above that box you will see a box that has shipping written in red. Click on that and then enter your zip code. My shipping was $12.41.
 
For folks who have tougher broadleaf weeds that 2,4D seems to not work on as well I use a product called "Crossroad" or "Crossbow" - it is like 2,4D on roids! It seems to have more backbone/spine to it in that it will get you a better kill on perennial broadleaf weeds like canada thistle, pigweed, poison ivy, brambles and brush and the like as well. It WILL kill clover, small trees and the like as well. It works great on your lawn if you want the dutch clover and dandelions and the like gone.....caution....you may not have as much grass as you think! Crossbow - runs me about $60 a gallon, Crossroad seems to be the more generic version and runs me about $45 a gallon. I have had good luck with both. Sometimes you just need something stronger than 2,4D and this stuff does the trick for me. I buy mine thru my local Rural King retailer.
crossbow.jpg
crossroad.jpg
 
For a herbicide that will take care of some troublesome weeds in clover, beans, corn, sorghum and a couple other crops take a look at Bentazon 4. Same active ingredient as Basagran. Troublesome weeds such as some thistle, smartweed and sedges http://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/www.agrian.com/pdfs/Bentazon_4_Label1h.pdf. It is a cheaper alternative to Clearcast and Raptor. It recommends using a surfactant and a fertilizer such as AMS. Some leaf burn on crop is expected but is temporary.
 
Back
Top