Bayer's Sakura 850 WG strong on phalaris and annual ryegrass

After two years of trials and evaluation, in soil types ranging from red loams to black Liverpool Plains alkaline soils, Russell Ison, has given the new Bayer released pre-emergent herbicide Sakura® 850 WG (active ingredient: pyroxasulfone), his nod of approval.

The Senior Agronomist with Tamworth Rural (Australia) says his work has shown perhaps the strongest benefit with Sakura is its long residual effect on weeds.

Russell’s most recent trial in 2011 was in a bread wheat variety. The situation was one of wheat dry sown into durum wheat stubble, so grass weeds were expected to emerge with the crop.

As the season progressed there was a ready germination of grass weeds.

Sakura was trialled alongside other pre-emergent herbicides Boxer Gold®, trifluralin and Stomp® mixed with trifluralin.

All treatments were applied at label rates and sprayed at their respective correct timings.

The crop was sown with a Gyral min-till seeder fitted with knife points. There was about 30% stubble cover at the time of spraying and pre-emergent herbicides were incorporated with the sowing equipment and rainfall just after sowing.

"Generally in this area there is a big issue with annual ryegrass when it emerges with the crop on early rainfall,” Russell said.

"The Sakura treatment was pretty obvious. We took farmers to the site and they easily picked it as the best treatment. Even after three months the effects were still evident.

"Sakura was more robust on the annual phalaris that came up with the crop with faster brownout than the other treatments.

"Phalaris can be particularly difficult to control with post-emergent sprays. Once it gets three to four leaves it can be really difficult because it really needs to be sprayed before the wheat is ready.

"There was a strip through the middle of the treatments where I spread annual ryegrass at about 150 seeds/m2, just to see how it would go. The Sakura did the best job on the ryegrass, then the Stomp and then the Boxer Gold and then the others.

"From my perspective in 2011, I wanted to have a look at Sakura in a different soil type to the year before which was a red loamy soil.

"In 2011 it was put down in a typical Liverpool Plains black soil of high pH with high weed burden made up of a fairly broad spectrum of grass weeds including annual phalaris and annual ryegrass.

"In the 10 x 10 m square patch where nothing was sprayed, there was some barley grass but predominantly ryegrass and lots of phalaris, so it worked really well.”

Russell said pre-emergent herbicides are coming back into favour with growers because farms are getting bigger and the importance of early sowing is well recognised.

He said growers will find Sakura in a high concentrate granule very easy to use.