Landscape Management, November 2018

WEED CONTROL WITH TURF SAFETY F inding an herbicide to use for postemergent grassy weed control can be a challenge for lawn care operators LCOs Lane Tredway technical services manager for Syngenta says the new Manuscript herbicide featuring the active ingredient pinoxaden is going to be a good resource for LCOs as part of a season long program to ensure their clients lawns are weed free and theyre renewing their programs year after year Manuscript is going to be a welcomed addition to the toolbox he says TURF SAFETY A big challenge for turf managers trying to control grassy weeds is to do so without severely injuring the desirable turf We want to be able to control those weeds without damaging turf and Manuscript can do that Tredway says LCOs are impressed with the level of turf safety which is crucial to lawn care in particular where aesthetics are so important Manuscript offers postemergence control of weeds including crabgrasses and dallisgrass in Bermudagrass and zoysiagrass In 90 to 100 degree heat many herbicides can exhibit side effects on the desirable turf says Shawn Emmack Mid South U S territory manager at Syngenta Manuscript doesnt do that You want to be able to apply a product thats going to work on the weeds but not damage the lawn he says TIMING FLEXIBILITY Weeds that germinate in early spring such as crabgrass get bigger and more difficult to control throughout the summer Typically LCOs are limited to only controlling young crabgrass plants With Manuscript LCOs can control small plants all the way to mid to late summer Tredway says adding that Manuscript is a supplement to preemergence herbicide programs or a rescue option for where a preemergent failed or wasnt applied With Manuscript LCOs arent limited to controlling weeds in April and May when the weeds are so small that you cant even see them yet Tredway says When you really need to be able to control them is mid season when those weeds are big and noticeable and they start to become more objectionable to the customers Sometimes LCOs inherit a yard or acquire a new customer mid season and that yard may not have had any herbicide treatment before so its full of weeds Now we offer an herbicide that provides good activity on dallisgrass during the summer months Emmack says Prior to Manuscript for effective control LCOs had to wait until fall to control dallisgrass Using Manuscript as a spot treatment can give those LCOs an opportunity to control some of these hard to control weeds that may have been neglected in the yard before Emmack adds I think the lawn care market is going to see this as a great new tool for their businesses Syngenta has done many trials across all segments of the turf industry including the southern U S and the transition zone Numerous test trials were conducted in southern U S this past summer that showed Manuscripts good foliar absorption according to Emmack who oversaw about 10 trials in his region He noted the product may be applied any time of year but the best control comes in the spring and fall MAXIMIZE EFFICACY The herbicide is packaged with Adigor a surfactant that was specifically developed to enhance the performance of Manuscript According to Tredway the surfactant increases and speeds up the absorption of Manuscripts active ingredient into the target weeds The herbicide is mostly foliar absorbed If LCOs get a rain storm during the day they can be more certain that enough of the active ingredient has been absorbed before the rainfall washes it off Tredway says Another benefit of the absorption rate is that LCOs dont have to rely on the homeowner to water in Manuscript or wait for natural rainfall to come along LCOs dont need a lot of extra steps to make the product work Emmack adds SELLING TIPS PHOTOS SHAWN EMMACK SYNGENTA SPONSORED CONTENT BY Lane Tredway LawnSellingTips Shawn Emmack Dallisgrass weeds in Common Bermudagrass the same day as the first application of Manuscript herbicide Common Bermudagrass unharmed by Manuscript surrounded by dead patches of dallisgrass ten days following application