BASF announces largest-ever stewardship training series for summer 2014

BASF recently announced an educational training and plot tour series for summer 2014, which is expected to be the largest training effort in the company’s history. The training series will reach 24 states in US and will focus on weed management, application best practices and overall stewardship of BASF herbicides.

“We are committed to ensuring growers’ success with new technologies,” said Luke Bozeman, Technical Market Manager, Herbicides, BASF. “The more knowledgeable growers are about precise stewardship practices, the more successful they will be in their applications.”
Participants will be introduced to the widely anticipated Engenia™ herbicide, which is slated for U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) registration in 2015. The series will provide information about best practices for stewardship of future Engenia herbicide applications in dicamba-tolerant (DT) crops. Additional training is expected post-EPA registration.

Attendees will tour field plots that demonstrate the efficacy and effectiveness of the BASF Advanced Acre portfolio of products when used together in a full-season program. Additional demonstrations will explore proper stewardship of other crop protection products and practices.

On Target Application Academy

At many of the summer training events, attendees will participate in the On Target Application Academy, a BASF spray application training led by industry professionals. Since its inception in 2012, the On Target Application Academy has reached more than 4,000 growers in 21 states. This training is focused on proper application techniques – including the importance of boom height, weed size, nozzles and equipment cleanout – and their impact on the desired application.

“As we move away from glyphosate-only treatments into more complete weed control programs, good stewardship practices will be essential,” Bozeman said. “Growers and applicators need to be aware of precise recommendations for spray applications in the future, including weather, weed height, time of day and the location of neighboring crops.”

Engenia Herbicide Stewardship

Engenia herbicide will be a technologically advanced dicamba formulation that provides an additional site of action for control of broadleaf weeds in DT crops, including DT soybeans and DT cotton. The new technology will provide postemergent and rate-dependent residual broadleaf control of tough-to-control weeds, including Palmer amaranth and waterhemp, making the product crucial to resistance management. Currently, growers have few tools available to control weed post-emergence in soybeans and cotton.

“Field trials have shown that Engenia herbicide will provide effective control of glyphosate-resistant broadleaf weeds,” said Bozeman. “This advanced herbicide will be a powerful new tool for growers facing weeds post-emergence and glyphosate herbicide resistance.”

Training Locations
The summer training series will be held in 24 states across the country, with the largest training events occurring at BASF research farms in Story City, Iowa; Pine Level, North Carolina; Beaver Crossing, Nebraska; and the newly expanded and fully renovated Seymour, Illinois location.

To participate in a training event in your area, contact your local authorized BASF retailer, your BASF Innovation Specialist or visit the On Target Application website for more information.