Herbicide Resistance Traits in Maize and Soybean: Current Status and Future Outlook

This article reviews, focusing on maize and soybean, previous efforts to develop nontransgenic herbicide-resistant crops (HRCs), currently available transgenic HRC traits and technologies, as well as future chemical weed management options over the horizon. Since the mid twentieth century, herbicides rapidly replaced all other means of weed management. Overreliance on ‘herbicide-only’ weed control strategies hastened evolution of HR weed species. Glyphosate-resistant (GR) crop technology revolutionized weed management in agronomic crops, but GR weeds, led by Palmer amaranth, severely reduced returns from various cropping systems and affected the bottom line of growers across the world. An additional problem was the lack of commercialization of a new herbicide mode of action since the 1990s. Auxinic HRCs offer a short-term alternative for management of GR Palmer amaranth and other weed species. New HRCs stacked with multiple herbicide resistance traits and at least two new herbicide modes of action expected to be available in the mid-2020s provide new chemical options for weed management in row crops in the next decade.

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Upgrading the RIM Model for Improved Support of Integrated Weed Management Extension Efforts in Cropping Systems

Weed Technology ◽

10.1614/wt-d-14-00020.1 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 28 (4) ◽

pp. 703-720 ◽

Cited By ~ 13

Author(s):

Myrtille Lacoste ◽

Stephen Powles

Keyword(s):

Herbicide Resistance ◽

Weed Management ◽

Cropping Systems ◽

Integrated Management ◽

Integrated Weed Management ◽

Weed Species ◽

Management Options ◽

Rigid Ryegrass ◽

And Control

RIM, or “Ryegrass Integrated Management,” is a user-friendly weed management software that integrates long-term economics. As a model-based decision support system, RIM enables users to easily build 10-year cropping scenarios and evaluate the impacts of management choices on annual rigid ryegrass populations and long-term profitability. Best used in a workshop format to enable learning through interactions, RIM can provide insights for the sustainable management of ryegrass through “what-if” scenarios in regions facing herbicide resistance issues. The upgrade of RIM is presented, with changes justified from an end-user perspective. The implementation of the model in a new, intuitive software format is presented, as well as the revision, update, and documentation of over 40 management options. Enterprises, establishment systems, and control options were redefined to represent current practices, with the notable inclusion of customizable herbicide options and techniques for weed seed control at harvest. Several examples of how RIM can be used with farmers to demonstrate the benefits of adopting recommended practices for managing or delaying the onset of herbicide resistance are presented. Originally designed for the dryland broadacre systems of the Australian southern grainbelt, RIM's underlying modeling was restructured to facilitate future updates and adaptation to other weed species and cropping regions.

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The nature and consequence of weed spread in cropping systems

Weed Science ◽

10.1017/s004317450009295x ◽

1997 ◽

Vol 45 (3) ◽

pp. 337-342 ◽

Cited By ~ 42

Author(s):

Donald C. Thill ◽

Carol A. Mallory-Smith

Keyword(s):

Herbicide Resistance ◽

Weed Management ◽

Short Distance ◽

Crop Production ◽

Cropping Systems ◽

Weed Seed ◽

Management Options ◽

Crop Species ◽

Weed Seeds ◽

Pollen Movement

Weeds spread through movement of seeds and vegetative reproductive propagules. Pollen movement can spread weedy traits, such as herbicide resistance, between related weed and crop species. Weed seeds can spread short or long distances by natural plant dehiscence mechanisms, wind, water, animals, and man&s activities. This symposium paper is a practical review of short-distance spread of weed seeds in and between nearby arable fields and noncrop lands, examining some of the causes of spread and subsequent effects on crop production. Pollen movement, as it affects the spread of herbicide resistance, also is considered a component of short-distance weed spread. Specific weed management options can be used to reduce man-caused weed seed spread within and between nearby fields, thus reducing potential crop yield losses. Long-term management will be more difficult for weed seed spread by natural dispersal mechanisms.

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Carrots and Sticks: Incentives and Regulations for Herbicide Resistance Management and Changing Behavior

Weed Science ◽

10.1614/ws-d-15-00171.1 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 64 (SP1) ◽

pp. 627-640 ◽

Cited By ~ 13

Author(s):

Michael Barrett ◽

John Soteres ◽

David Shaw

Keyword(s):

United States ◽

Herbicide Resistance ◽

Weed Management ◽

Cropping Systems ◽

Wide Spectrum ◽

Resistance Management ◽

Herbicide Tolerance ◽

The United States ◽

Weed Species ◽

Agricultural Community

Although the problem of herbicide resistance is not new, the widespread evolution of glyphosate resistance in weed species such as Palmer amaranth (Amaranthus palmeriS. Wats.), common waterhemp (Amaranthus rudisSauer), and kochia [Kochia scoparia(L.) Schrad.] raised awareness throughout the agricultural community of herbicide resistance as a problem. Glyphosate-resistant weeds resulted in the loss of a simple, single herbicide option to control a wide spectrum of weeds that gave efficacious and economical weed management in corn (Zea maysL.), soybean [Glycine max(L.) Merr.], and cotton (Gossypium hirsutumL.) crops engineered for tolerance to this herbicide and planted over widespread areas of the South and Midwest of the United States. Beyond these crops, glyphosate is used for vegetation management in other cropping systems and in noncrop areas across the United States, and resistance to this herbicide threatens its continued utility in all of these situations. This, combined with the development of multiple herbicide-resistant weeds and the lack of commercialization of herbicides with new mechanisms of action over the past years (Duke 2012), caused the weed science community to realize that stewardship of existing herbicide resources, extending their useful life as long as possible, is imperative. Further, while additional herbicide tolerance traits are being incorporated into crops, weed management in these crops will still be based upon using existing, old, herbicide chemistries.

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Herbicide-Resistant Weeds: Management Tactics and Practices

Weed Technology ◽

10.1614/wt-05-084r1.1 ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 20 (3) ◽

pp. 793-814 ◽

Cited By ~ 205

Author(s):

Hugh J. Beckie

Keyword(s):

Herbicide Resistance ◽

Weed Management ◽

Management Practices ◽

Cropping Systems ◽

Integrated Weed Management ◽

Weed Species ◽

Herbicide Resistant ◽

Application Rates ◽

Selection For ◽

Reactive Management

In input-intensive cropping systems around the world, farmers rarely proactively manage weeds to prevent or delay the selection for herbicide resistance. Farmers usually increase the adoption of integrated weed management practices only after herbicide resistance has evolved, although herbicides continue to be the dominant method of weed control. Intergroup herbicide resistance in various weed species has been the main impetus for changes in management practices and adoption of cropping systems that reduce selection for resistance. The effectiveness and adoption of herbicide and nonherbicide tactics and practices for the proactive and reactive management of herbicide-resistant (HR) weeds are reviewed. Herbicide tactics include sequences and rotations, mixtures, application rates, site-specific application, and use of HR crops. Nonherbicide weed-management practices or nonselective herbicides applied preplant or in crop, integrated with less-frequent selective herbicide use in diversified cropping systems, have mitigated the evolution, spread, and economic impact of HR weeds.

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Weed Management with Glyphosate- and Glufosinate-Based Systems in PHY 485 WRF Cotton

Weed Technology ◽

10.1614/wt-d-10-00008.1 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 25 (2) ◽

pp. 183-191 ◽

Cited By ~ 31

Author(s):

Jared R. Whitaker ◽

Alan C. York ◽

David L. Jordan ◽

A. Stanley Culpepper

Keyword(s):

Weed Control ◽

Weed Management ◽

Fiber Quality ◽

Palmer Amaranth ◽

Weed Species ◽

Crop Tolerance ◽

The North ◽

Annual Grasses ◽

Resistance Trait ◽

Cotton Belt

Glyphosate-resistant (GR) Palmer amaranth has become a serious pest in parts of the Cotton Belt. Some GR cotton cultivars also contain the WideStrike™ insect resistance trait, which confers tolerance to glufosinate. Use of glufosinate-based management systems in such cultivars could be an option for managing GR Palmer amaranth. The objective of this study was to evaluate crop tolerance and weed control with glyphosate-based and glufosinate-based systems in PHY 485 WRF cotton. The North Carolina field experiment compared glyphosate and glufosinate alone and in mixtures applied twice before four- to six-leaf cotton. Additional treatments included glyphosate and glufosinate mixed withS-metolachlor or pyrithiobac applied to one- to two-leaf cotton followed by glyphosate or glufosinate alone on four- to six-leaf cotton. All treatments received a residual lay-by application. Excellent weed control was observed from all treatments on most weed species. Glyphosate was more effective than glufosinate on glyphosate-susceptible (GS) Palmer amaranth and annual grasses, while glufosinate was more effective on GR Palmer amaranth. Annual grass and GS Palmer amaranth control by glyphosate plus glufosinate was often less than control by glyphosate alone but similar to or greater than control by glufosinate alone, while mixtures were more effective than either herbicide alone on GR Palmer amaranth. Glufosinate caused minor and transient injury to the crop, but no differences in cotton yield or fiber quality were noted. This research demonstrates glufosinate can be applied early in the season to PHY 485 WRF cotton without concern for significant adverse effects on the crop. Although glufosinate is often less effective than glyphosate on GS Palmer amaranth, GR Palmer amaranth can be controlled with well-timed applications of glufosinate. Use of glufosinate in cultivars with the WideStrike trait could fill a significant void in current weed management programs for GR Palmer amaranth in cotton.

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Effects of Palmer Amaranth (Amaranthus palmeri) Establishment Time and Distance from the Crop Row on Biological and Phenological Characteristics of the Weed: Implications on Soybean Yield

Weed Science ◽

10.1017/wsc.2018.84 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 67 (1) ◽

pp. 126-135 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Nicholas E. Korres ◽

Jason K. Norsworthy ◽

Andy Mauromoustakos

Keyword(s):

Seed Production ◽

Weed Management ◽

Cropping Systems ◽

Management Strategies ◽

Palmer Amaranth ◽

Yield Reduction ◽

Amaranthus Palmeri ◽

Soybean Yield ◽

Management Measures ◽

Weed Population Dynamics

AbstractInformation about weed biology and weed population dynamics is critical for the development of efficient weed management programs. A field experiment was conducted in Fayetteville, AR, during 2014 and 2015 to examine the effects of Palmer amaranth (Amaranthus palmeriS. Watson) establishment time in relation to soybean [Glycine max(L.) Merr.] emergence and the effects ofA. palmeridistance from the soybean row on the weed’s height, biomass, seed production, and flowering time and on soybean yield. The establishment time factor, in weeks after crop emergence (WAE), was composed of six treatment levels (0, 1, 2, 4, 6, and 8 WAE), whereas the distance from the crop consisted of three treatment levels (0, 24, and 48 cm). Differences inA. palmeribiomass and seed production averaged across distance from the crop were found at 0 and 1 WAE in both years. Establishment time had a significant effect onA. palmeriseed production through greater biomass production and height increases at earlier dates.Amaranthus palmerithat was established with the crop (0 WAE) overtopped soybean at about 7 and 10 WAE in 2014 and 2015, respectively. Distance from the crop affectedA. palmeriheight, biomass, and seed production. The greater the distance from the crop, the higherA. palmeriheight, biomass, and seed production at 0 and 1 WAE compared with other dates (i.e., 2, 4, 6, and 8 WAE).Amaranthus palmeriestablishment time had a significant impact on soybean yield, but distance from the crop did not. The earlierA. palmeriinterfered with soybean (0 and 1 WAE), the greater the crop yield reduction; after that period no significant yield reductions were recorded compared with the rest of the weed establishment times. Knowledge ofA. palmeriresponse, especially at early stages of its life cycle, is important for designing efficient weed management strategies and cropping systems that can enhance crop competitiveness. Control ofA. palmeriwithin the first week after crop emergence or reduced distance between crop and weed are important factors for an effective implementation of weed management measures againstA. palmeriand reduced soybean yield losses due to weed interference.

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Weed management with CGA-362622 in transgenic and nontransgenic cotton

Weed Science ◽

10.1614/p2002-014 ◽

2003 ◽

Vol 51 (6) ◽

pp. 1002-1009 ◽

Cited By ~ 19

Author(s):

Dunk Porterfield ◽

John W. Wilcut ◽

Jerry W. Wells ◽

Scott B. Clewis

Keyword(s):

North Carolina ◽

Weed Control ◽

Weed Management ◽

Field Studies ◽

Palmer Amaranth ◽

Management Systems ◽

Weed Species ◽

Crop Tolerance ◽

Prickly Sida ◽

Smooth Pigweed

Field studies conducted at three locations in North Carolina in 1998 and 1999 evaluated crop tolerance, weed control, and yield with CGA-362622 alone and in combination with various weed management systems in transgenic and nontransgenic cotton systems. The herbicide systems used bromoxynil, CGA-362622, glyphosate, and pyrithiobac applied alone early postemergence (EPOST) or mixtures of CGA-362622 plus bromoxynil, glyphosate, or pyrithiobac applied EPOST. Trifluralin preplant incorporated followed by (fb) fluometuron preemergence (PRE) alone or fb a late POST–directed (LAYBY) treatment of prometryn plus MSMA controlled all the weed species present less than 90%. Herbicide systems that included soil-applied and LAYBY herbicides plus glyphosate EPOST or mixtures of CGA-362622 EPOST plus bromoxynil, glyphosate, or pyrithiobac controlled broadleaf signalgrass, entireleaf morningglory, large crabgrass, Palmer amaranth, prickly sida, sicklepod, and smooth pigweed at least 90%. Only cotton treated with these herbicide systems yielded equivalent to the weed-free check for each cultivar. Bromoxynil systems did not control Palmer amaranth and sicklepod, pyrithiobac systems did not control sicklepod, and CGA-362622 systems did not control prickly sida.

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A New Approach to Weed Management to Mitigate Herbicide Resistance in Argentina

Weed Science ◽

10.1614/ws-d-16-00016.1 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 64 (SP1) ◽

pp. 641-648 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Claudio Rubione ◽

Sarah M. Ward

Keyword(s):

Herbicide Resistance ◽

Weed Management ◽

Integrated Weed Management ◽

National Committee ◽

Weed Species ◽

Corn Production ◽

Public And Private ◽

Herbicide Resistant ◽

Crop Varieties ◽

Export Taxes

The evolution of herbicide-resistant weeds is a major concern in the corn- and soybean-producing Pampas region of Argentina, where growers predominantly plant glyphosate-resistant crop varieties and depend heavily on glyphosate for weed control. Currently, 16 weed species in Argentina are resistant to one or more of three different herbicide mechanisms of action, and resistant weed populations continue to increase, posing a serious threat to agricultural production. Implementation of integrated weed management to address herbicide resistance faces significant barriers in Argentina, especially current land ownership and rental patterns in the Pampas. More than 60% of Pampas cropland is rented to tenants for periods that rarely exceed 1 yr, resulting in crop rotation being largely abandoned, and crop export taxes and quotas have further discouraged wheat and corn production in favor of continuous soybean production. In this paper we discuss ways to facilitate new approaches to weed management in Argentina, including legal and economic reforms and the formation of a national committee of stakeholders from public and private agricultural sectors.

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Modeling Glyphosate Resistance Management Strategies for Palmer Amaranth (Amaranthus palmeri) in Cotton

Weed Technology ◽

10.1614/wt-d-10-00171.1 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 25 (3) ◽

pp. 335-343 ◽

Cited By ~ 52

Author(s):

Paul Neve ◽

Jason K. Norsworthy ◽

Kenneth L. Smith ◽

Ian A. Zelaya

Keyword(s):

Weed Management ◽

Management Strategies ◽

Resistance Management ◽

Glyphosate Resistance ◽

Palmer Amaranth ◽

Case Scenario ◽

Management Options ◽

Worst Case ◽

Resistance Risk ◽

Resistance Evolution

A simulation model is used to explore management options to mitigate risks of glyphosate resistance evolution in Palmer amaranth in glyphosate-resistant cotton in the southern United States. Our first analysis compares risks of glyphosate resistance evolution for seven weed-management strategies in continuous glyphosate-resistant cotton monoculture. In the “worst-case scenario” with five applications of glyphosate each year and no other herbicides applied, evolution of glyphosate resistance was predicted in 74% of simulated populations. In other strategies, glyphosate was applied with various combinations of preplant, PRE, and POST residual herbicides. The most effective strategy included four glyphosate applications with a preplant fomesafen application, and POST tank mixtures of glyphosate plusS-metolachlor followed by glyphosate plus flumioxazin. This strategy reduced the resistance risk to 12% of populations. A second series of simulations compared strategies where glyphosate-resistant cotton was grown in one-to-one rotations with corn or cotton with other herbicide resistance traits. In general, crop rotation reduced risks of resistance by approximately 50% and delayed the evolution of resistance by 2 to 3 yr. These analyses demonstrate that risks of glyphosate resistance evolution in Palmer amaranth can be reduced by reducing glyphosate use within and among years, controlling populations with diverse herbicide modes of action, and ensuring that population size is kept low. However, no strategy completely eliminated the risk of glyphosate resistance.

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Differentiation of Life-History Traits among Palmer Amaranth Populations (Amaranthus palmeri) and Its Relation to Cropping Systems and Glyphosate Sensitivity

Weed Science ◽

10.1017/wsc.2017.14 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 65 (3) ◽

pp. 339-349 ◽

Cited By ~ 19

Author(s):

Washington Bravo ◽

Ramon G. Leon ◽

Jason A. Ferrell ◽

Michael J. Mulvaney ◽

C. Wesley Wood

Keyword(s):

Life History ◽

Crop Rotation ◽

Life History Traits ◽

Cropping Systems ◽

Glyphosate Resistance ◽

The United States ◽

Organic Production ◽

Palmer Amaranth ◽

Flowering Plant ◽

Weed Species

Palmer amaranth’s ability to evolve resistance to different herbicides has been studied extensively, but there is little information about how this weed species might be evolving other life-history traits that could potentially make it more aggressive and difficult to control. We characterized growth and morphological variation among 10 Palmer amaranth populations collected in Florida and Georgia from fields with different cropping histories, ranging from continuous short-statured crops (vegetables and peanut) to tall crops (corn and cotton) and from intensive herbicide use history to organic production. Palmer amaranth populations differed in multiple traits such as fresh and dry weight, days to flowering, plant height, and leaf and canopy shape. Differences between populations for these traits ranged from 36% up to 87%. Although glyphosate-resistant (GR) populations collected from cropping systems including GR crops exhibited higher values of the aforementioned variables than glyphosate-susceptible (GS) populations, variation in traits was not explained by glyphosate resistance or distance between populations. Cropping system components such as crop rotation and crop canopy structure better explained the differences among populations. The higher growth of GR populations compared with GS populations was likely the result of multiple selection forces present in the cropping systems in which they grow rather than a pleiotropic effect of the glyphosate resistance trait. Results suggest that Palmer amaranth can evolve life-history traits increasing its growth and reproduction potential in cropping systems, which explains its rapid spread throughout the United States. Furthermore, our findings highlight the need to consider the evolutionary consequences of crop rotation structure and the use of more competitive crops, which might promote the selection of more aggressive biotypes in weed species with high genetic variability.

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