Glyphosate resistant kochia challenges farmers
Kochia has been a weed of concern in South Dakota for almost a century. First introduced to the U.S. as an ornamental plant in 1900, kochia has had plenty of time to become an aggressive weed.
Kochia has been a weed of concern in South Dakota for almost a century. First introduced to the U.S. as an ornamental plant in 1900, kochia has had plenty of time to become an aggressive weed.
In December 2012, Steve Zwinger’s phone started ringing, with many North Dakota farmers at the other end of the line. Organic corn had hit a flabbergasting $14 per bushel, and conventional farmers wanted to ask Zwinger, an extension agent for NDSU, how they could cash in on organic corn.
This past season, SDSU state agronomist Nathan Mueller did not put cows out to graze in his corn field near Hooper, Neb. He wanted the extra residue left to help with next year’s crop. “Residue in a dry year helps retain moisture,” stated Mueller, “that’s why it’s good to leave those corn stalks in the field.”