Weed control in winter crops

Harvest aid or salvage spraying winter crops

The continuing wet conditions in the 2022 season means that many crops across NSW have late weed germinations that will affect growers’ ability to harvest on time and deliver a clean grain sample. Weeds such as skeleton weed, bindweed, melons, sowthistle, prickly lettuce, fat hen and New Zealand spinach can interfere with harvesting, while weed seeds such as saffron thistle, rough poppy, Mexican poppy and black/field bindweed can contaminate grain.

There is a number of registered herbicide options for managing these late weed problems or uneven crop maturity, which are listed in the Harvest aid or salvage spraying for winter crops update.

Growers also need to be mindful that applying herbicides to winter crops late in the season increases the risk of potential herbicide drift onto sensitive crops such as cotton or summer pulses. Key points around minimising the risk of spray drift are also discussed in the update.

What's new in 2022

The NSW DPI Weed control in winter crops guide is currently undergoing an industry/stakeholder review. There will not be a 2022 edition, but to keep you up to date with what’s new from the  agri-chemical companies in 2022, NSW DPI has produced the following list. This includes both new products and new use patterns of already registered herbicides.