April 17, 2009

Several new products will be available for insect management in Nebraska field crops this year. Following is a brief description of these products, organized by manufacturer. Please refer to the product label or other information for complete information.

Bayer CropScience

Belt™ SC. Bayer CropScience has introduced a new insecticide, Belt™ SC, which contains the active ingredient, flubendiamide, from a new chemical class, the phthalic acid diamides. This chemistry disrupts the calcium balance in insect muscles, resulting in paralysis and death.

It is labeled for field corn, popcorn, sweet corn and corn grown for seed and controls several caterpillar pests of corn including armyworms (beet, fall, yellowstriped and true), black cutworm, corn earworm, European corn borer, Southwestern corn borer, and western bean cutworm. It is applied at a rate of 2-3 fl oz per acre, with a minimum application volume of 10 gallons per acre by ground and 5 gallons per acre by air. Belt SC, which has a restricted entry interval of 12 hours, should not be applied more than four times per season. It can be applied through sprinkler irrigation systems.

Dow AgroSciences

Lorsban®. Dow AgroSciences has announced several changes to its Lorsban products.Lorsban® 15G has the following changes:

• Added preharvest interval for sweet corn and removed grazing restrictions for all corn;
• Changed preharvest interval for soybean to 28 days;
• Changed preharvest interval for sugarbeet to 30 days;
• Changed preharvest interval for sunflower to 42 days.

Lorsban® Advanced, a new formulation of chlorpyrifos, features a low-odor, water-based formulation. It has the same use rates as Lorsban 4E.

FMC Corporation

Mustang® Max EC. FMC Corporation changed the manufacturing process for Mustang Max, which allowed a label change from Warning to Caution. The new formulation, called Mustang Max EC, has the same active ingredient, zeta-cypermethrin, and the same 0.8 lb a.i./gallon formulation as before. In Nebraska, 24c labels allow at-plant use on sugarbeets and a one-day preharvest interval for seed corn.

Hero™. A new insecticide, Hero, contains two pyrethroid insecticides, bifenthrin and zeta-cypermethrin. It is labeled for a variety of insect and mite pests on several field crops including field corn (grain and silage), popcorn, field corn grown for seed, soybeans, and potatoes.

Makhteshim Agan of North America, Inc. (MANA)

Alias™ 4F and Fanfare 2EC. MANA has expanded the label of several of its products including Alias 4F on soybeans and Fanfare® 2EC on dried beans and potatoes. Alias 4F contains the active ingredient imidacloprid and is labeled on soybeans for control of aphids, bean leaf beetle, rootworm adults, leafhoppers and whiteflies. The use rate is 1.5 fl oz per acre. Fanfare 2EC contains the active ingredient bifenthrin and is labeled on dried beans for control of a variety of pests at rates ranging from 1.6-6.4 fl oz per acre. Fanfare is labeled on potatoes as a planting time, lay-by, or foliar application for a variety of insects.

Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc.

Optimum® AcreMax™. Pioneer Hi-Bred has announced a new product line which, pending regulatory approval by EPA, will change the way refuges are used for insect resistance management. Currently a structured refuge of at least 20% of the acres on a farm must be planted to hybrid not expressing the Bt trait, with some differences between corn borer and rootworm active hybrids in terms of distance of refuge from the Bt corn field. Optimum® AcreMax® hybrids will feature built-in resistance management with the refuge integrated in-the-bag, that is, there will be a mix of Bt corn and refuge corn in a single bag.

Pioneer plans to introduce these products in a phased manner; Optimum AcreMax I will eliminate the need for a separate refuge for corn rootworm, and Optimum AcreMax 2 will eliminate the need for a separate refuge for both corn rootworm and European corn borer. As of this writing, neither product has received regulatory approval by EPA.

Both products are based on the Herculex family of hybrids. Optimum AcreMax I will contain no more than 98% of a Herculex XTRA hybrid, and no less than 2% of a hybrid with Herculex I trait for corn borer, which will serve as the refuge for the corn rootworm Bt trait in Herculex XTRA.

Syngenta Crop Protection, Inc.

Endigo® ZC. Endigo® ZC insecticide containing lambda-cyhalothrin and thiamethoxam is now registered for use on soybeans. Endigo is effective against a variety of insect pests at use rates ranging from 2.5-4.5 fl. oz per acre. It has a 30-day preharvest interval. Do not use less than 10 gallons per acre for ground applications or 3 gallons per acre for aerial applications. Do not graze or harvest treated soybean forage, straw or hay for livestock feed. Do not apply this product within 45 days of planting if soybean seed were treated with a neonicotinoid product (e.g., Cruiser, Poncho, Gaucho). May be applied through sprinkler irrigation systems.

Voliam flexi®. Voliam flexi® is now registered for use on potatoes. This insecticide contains two active ingredients, thiamethoxam and chlorantraniliprole, with different modes of action. It is active against aphids, beet armyworm, cabbage looper, Colorado potato beetle, European corn borer, flea beetles and potato leafhoppers. It is labeled for use at 4 oz per acre. The preharvest interval is 14 days.

Robert Wright
Extension Entomology Specialist