Bromus diandrus Roth. control with MON 37532 in spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). 2. Effect of relative weed density and time of spraying

Abstract

Bromus diandrus Roth, is one of the most troublesome weeds in spring wheat crops of the western Cape wheat producing area of the Republic of South Africa and Australia. The selective control of this weed in wheat crops may, in future, be possible with MON 37532 (sulfosulfuron) a new herbicide developed by Monsanto SA. The effect of the relative density of B. diandrus in a wheat crop on the efficacy of this herbicide sprayed at either the 2- or6-leaf stage of the weed was studied in a pot experiment in a temperature-controlled glasshouse. A density of 3 plants pot-1 (170 plants rrr-2) was used for the wheat crop, while that of B. diandrus varied between 0 and 10 plants pot-1 (565 plants -2). At early applications (2-leaf stage), efficacy of MON 37532 improved with higher densities of B. diandrus. This was possibly due to stress conditions created by higher weed densities. This tendency was less evident when MON 37532 was applied at the 6-leaf stage. Reduced susceptibility in the older plants and less effic...