Tolerance of identity preserved soybean cultivars to preemergence herbicides

Abstract

Six field trials were conducted over a 3-yr period (2011 to 2013) near Exeter and Ridgetown, Ontario, Canada, to assess the tolerance of seven identity-preserved (IP) soybean cultivars to preemergence (PRE) herbicides applied at 2× the recommended dose. All cultivars demonstrated excellent tolerance to dimethenamid-P, pyroxasulfone, S-metolachlor, chlorimuron-ethyl, clomazone, cloransulam-methyl, flumetsulam and imazethapyr, showing 5% or less injury. At Exeter, linuron caused as much as 13 and 18% injury at 2 and 4 wk after soybean emergence, while injury due to metribuzin was as high as 22 and 47% for the same dates, respectively. At Exeter, linuron, metribuzin and S-metolachlor plus metribuzin reduced soybean height up to 17, 41 and 24%, respectively; soybean height was generally not affected at the Ridgetown sites. At Exeter, metribuzin reduced soybean yield up to 38% for cultivars S03W4, Madison and OAC Lakeview, while S23T5 was not significantly reduced. On the contrary, metribuzin yield loss at Ridgetown was nonsignificant. Results from this study suggest that PRE application of metribuzin at 2× field dose has potential to cause unacceptable injury and yield reduction in IP soybeans under some soil and climatic conditions and may vary according to cultivar.