Chemicals Containing Multiple Modes of Action

As herbicide resistance rages on, chemical companies are taking steps to create products that have built-in resistance protection.  For example, Syngenta Crop Protection recently launched Halex GT herbicide for corn and Endigo insecticide for cotton, each of which has multiple modes of action for resistance management.  Additionally, a new herbicide for broadleaf weeds in cereals will be available for the 2008 season and also has two modes of action built-in.

These new chemicals, although they may not contain new modes of action, are beneficial. They encourage the use of multiple modes of action and attack weeds from several fronts because they make sure more than one mode of action is being used on a field.  However, resistance could still develop, and may already be lingering from a past history of selection pressure from a particular herbicide mode of action. ALS herbicides, for example, were widely used before glyphosate became heavily used with the introduction of glyphosate-tolerant crops. ALS-resistance may still be existing in weed populations and could potentially cause issues with stacked resistance, or resistance to multiple modes of action. In this case, it would be glyphosate and ALS herbicides.

In what ways are you incorporating herbicides with multiple modes of action premixed in one product? How do these fit into your resistance management program?