Scouting fields and washing imported equipment is vital to controlling unwanted weeds

One of the main ways waterhemp arrives from across the US/Canada border into Manitoba is through moving equipment.

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Field 2 Field’s agronomist Christine Kilpatrick discovered waterhemp west of Elm Creek, MB and Russ Pauls, on a trip south of the border, saw a header at a dealership with waterhemp and kochia growing out of it.

“We need to stay diligent about cleaning equipment and scouting our fields,” said Jason Voogt, Carman, MB, Field 2 Field Agronomy owner.

Voogt said producers must diligently clean equipment and scout their fields when a weed like this pops up. Attaching to equipment is one way of coming in, but other ways beyond human control, like flooding from rivers, can carry up the seed. While ducks, geese, and migrating birds can still bring it along, they are hard to control.

Voogt emphasized that cleaning equipment is crucial for preventing the spread of weeds like water hemp. He shared an example of their agronomist, Russell, and his family inspecting a header and immediately recognizing the need for thorough cleaning. Voogt stressed the importance of thoroughly blowing out and washing equipment, especially when bringing it across borders, to prevent the spread of dirt and weed seeds, which can carry resistant strains like water hemp.

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“It’s not developing weed control resistance by being here, it’s already bringing Group 9, Group 2, and Group 14 resistance with it,” he said.

Whether it’s a cultivator or a header for a combine, the person hauling the equipment should wash it thoroughly to ensure it’s free of dirt and contaminants.

When a waterhemp plant is found in a field, it needs destroying since it is a tier one noxious weed. The farmer must pull the plants, bag them, and burn them.

“Over the past few years, our agronomists have sometimes found just a couple of plants on the edge of a field, and they were able to get rid of them easily,” he said.

One of Field 2 Field’s agronomists, Christine, is working this year with a new farmer west of Elm Creek, MB. Everything is new to her as far as his fields go. She found waterhemp in one of her soybean fields. It had been a problem for several years, but the farmer didn’t realize what he had. It’s a big area. Christine was out there on a recent Saturday morning with the farmer and his family, pulling waterhemp for three and a half hours.

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They filled 17 black garbage bags with waterhemp, and there’s still more to go.

“The idea is to manage it by pulling and destroying the plants as best we can.”

Voogt described remembering the historic practice of weed roguing – scouting and pulling weeds – and said, “we’re back to that because the herbicide program for those soybeans this year didn’t kill the weeds, which means we have resistance to Group 2, Group 9, and glyphosate.”

In this particular case, Voogt had to manage it by pulling up as many weed plants as possible. Rotation, using different herbicides, and adjusting row spacing are important.

“These strategies will help the crop compete with the weeds in the field. It will be hard to get them all, but we will try.”

Voogt said scouting is crucial because waterhemp is popping up in more and more areas where it wasn’t before. It’s just about getting the message out to their clients.

As harvest gets closer, look for any escapes or weeds sticking above the crop canopy. If it’s a pigweed, check to determine if it’s a regular pigweed species or potentially waterhemp.

“We just have to keep checking.”

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