An investigation of mesotrione alone or in herbicide combinations for weed management in corn

Field and greenhouse studies were conducted to evaluate weed control and corn response to mesotrione alone and in combination with other commonly used corn herbicides. In the field, mesotrione controlled common lambsquarters and redroot pigweed but failed to adequately control green foxtail. Combining mesotrione with other PRE and/or POST herbicides increased the spectrum of weed control to include green foxtail and improved the consistency of broadleaf weed control. Greenhouse studies demonstrated that the activity of POST mesotrione could be increased when mesotrione is tank-mixed with atrazine. Corn showed excellent tolerance to mesotrione. Results of this research demonstrate that control of many troublesome weeds in Intermountain corn production can be obtained with herbicide programs containing mesotrione.