Evaluation of Atrazine Alternatives for Efficacy of Weed Control in Sweet Corn on Long Island

On Long Island, the use of atrazine is being closely evaluated as a herbicide for sweet corn growers. Although some products containing atrazine have been voluntarily withdrawn from registered use on Long Island, there are several that remain available. Our goal was to evaluate and demonstrate viable cultural practices, herbicide alternatives and supplements to atrazine for weed management in this important crop. A demonstration was conducted on a grower fields that featured the most effective alternatives and reduced (atrazine) rate combinations that are currently available. A field trial and demonstration, conducted at LIHREC, evaluated for a second year the efficacy of currently registered alternatives on several common weed species. Another field trial evaluated how plant-back restrictions on some vegetable crops might influence the grower’s choice of weed management tool. The demonstration plots and results were displayed at the LIHREC plant science day and also presented at grower meetings