Waterhemp weed solution set for Crop Management Conference, Dec. 18-19

COLUMBIA, Mo. – “Waterhemp is winning,” says Kevin Bradley, University of Missouri Extension weed management specialist.

Bradley has seven best-management practices for control of the glyphosate-resistant weed. He will tell all at the MU Crop Management Conference, Dec. 18-19.

The meeting offers 36 one-hour sessions on solving crop problems. It will be in the Columbia Holiday Inn Executive Center, near Interstate 70.

Herbicide resistance has become a big problem in all counties north of I-70. Heavy applications of glyphosate don’t kill it.

Bradley estimates that waterhemp costs farmers $80 million per year in added herbicide and spraying costs. That’s up from four years ago, when glyphosate controlled the weed.

Almost three-fourths of Missouri soybean acreage likely contains the resistant waterhemp, Bradley says.

Other problems are developing. Six counties in southeastern Missouri have glyphosate-resistant Palmer amaranth, once considered a southern weed. Now Palmer amaranth is found in northern Missouri.

Control recommendations will be taught at the Crop Management Conference. Formerly, the conference was limited to certified crop advisers. Now it welcomes farmers.

A popular session is the “Weed, Insect and Disease Management Update,” Bradley says. He’ll be joined by MU Extension specialists Wayne Bailey, entomologist, and Laura Sweets, plant pathologist.

Bradley invites specialists from surrounding state land-grant universities to speak. Talks will cover not only growing crops but also soils, economics, weather and forages.

Other topics include drought recovery. Bill Wiebold, MU Extension crop specialist, will cover “Crop Management to Increase Yield Stability.”

Jon Hagler, director of the Missouri Department of Agriculture, opens the conference at 8:30 a.m., Dec. 18. The program ends at 4 p.m., Dec. 19.

A $160 fee for the two days includes lunches, breaks and handouts. One-day fee is $105. On Dec. 15 fees increase by $25.

Participants can register online through the MU Conference Office. Go to plantsci.missouri.edu/cmc.

Hotel reservations at special rates can be made at 573-445-8531.

Bradley worried that the fee might stop farmers from attending. One told him that if he didn’t learn to grow 10 more bushels of soybeans, he shouldn’t attend.