Dissipation of glyphosate from grapevine soils in Sonora, Mexico

Grapevine is one of the important crops in Sonora, due to revenue generation from its export to foreign countries. Among the most widely used herbicides for this crop is glyphosate, which is considered moderately toxic and persistent. The present research evaluates the dissipation of glyphosate in grapevine planted soil at three depths (5, 30 and 60 cm). Sampling was carried out before glyphosate application, and 5, 10, 18, 27, and 65 days after. Glyphosate was extracted from soil samples using ammonium hydroxide. The derivate extracts were partitioned with dichloromethane and analyzed using gas chromatography with pulsed flame photometric detector (PFPD). The results showed that average glyphosate residues are significantly greater at 5 cm (0.09 mg kg-1) than the other depths (30 and 60 cm), having a difference of 0.078 mg kg-1 between them (P < 0.03). Glyphosate concentration time profiles were similar; it reached maximum soil concentration in a range of 10 to 18 days after application. The half-life of glyphosate in soil has an average of 39 days at all depths. Our data suggests that the release in soil of glyphosate applied to weeds delays its transference to soil by 14 days, and extends residue half life to 55 days after application. These results could be the basis for further research, including more environmental parameters that could affect the dissipation or degradation process in soil