How does RR corn work?

[NYBuckHunter27]

I am wondering if you can spray roundup/glyophosphate at any time in a roundup ready corn plot or does it have to be when the seed is first put into the ground? 

 

My plants are about 4-6 inches tall but the weeds are starting to invade again, i am wondering if i can spray between the rows to knock the weeds down.

[wolc123]

You can spray the RR corn for a long time yet.  I have sprayed corn up to 2 ft tall without a problem.   Once it starts to tassle, you might want to stop.   I usually spray my RR corn one time when it is about 12" tall.  I use a 15 gallon spot sprayer with a 12-volt pump which is mounted on my Farmall cub, one-row cultivating tractor.   In a single pass, that tractor mechanically removes most of the weeds between the corn rows, with shovels mounted ahead and behind the rear tires.  While doing that, the stream of roundup is directed on the rows to chemically take out all the weeds there.    I save some spray that way, using about 1 quart of roundup per acre.  With a boom sprayer, which I assume you will use, you will need about 2 quarts per acre of Roundup.  With my spot sprayer I mix 2 fl oz of roundup per gallon of water.  The amount you mix depends on your sprayer flow and your ground speed but 2 oz/gallon is a good starting point.  

 

The Roundup is deactivated upon hitting the dirt, and only kills by direct contact with growing plants.  There is no residual carryover like there is with most selective herbicides.   As long as it dries on the plant (no rain for 1/2 hour or so), it will kill just about anything in about 7-14 days.

 

I am running a little RR corn experiment right now.  Last year I killed a buck with a stomach full of RR corn and all that remained of the gut pile after a couple days was a little pile of corn.   I planted 10 kernals of that in a tomato pack last week but it has not sprouted yet.   It will be interesting to see if it does, and if it retains the RR trait after passing half way thru a deer.     

[Curmudgeon]

There is a hot controversy right now about glyphosate - the active ingredient in Roundup -being carcinogenic. As far as no residue, a study in Europe found glyphosate residue in 44% of urine samples from people from 18 countries. It is now banned in France. See - http://www.theguardian.com/cities/2015/apr/21/glyphosate-probably-carcinogenic-pesticide-why-cities-use-it

 

I do use it for invasive species control, and around young Christmas trees but would never use it on food crops - for myself - or my animals. It is now being linked to gluten intolerance - a rapidly growing problem in this country - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3945755/

 

Deer eating these crops could never be considered "organic".

 

BTW - Growing any RR plants from seeds you collect can get you in big trouble.

[EspressoBuzz]

In 1980 I invested in and made a boatload of money from Monsanto. I don't regret the money made but i do regret sponsoring Monsanto. In 1995 I divested myself of all Monsanto stock.

 

http://worldnewsdailyreport.com/genetically-modified-ants-could-replace-honey-bees-claims-monsanto-expert/

 

The hubris of a company that tells us not to worry about declining honeybee populations they have the answer (to the problem they caused) genetically modified ants.

 

Please, please don't use RR or Monsanto seed, please.

[Curmudgeon]

I buy generic glyphosate for my invasive species control. I won't support Monsanto.

 

Anyone who has developed gluten intolerance should read up on the stuff. Did you know they spray it directly on wheat before it is harvested? Wheat for human consumption! Good thing Mama only buys organic flour.

[G-Man]

Organic, is a joke do you actually know what they consider organic? Look up the regs, unless you grow it yourself I would question all organic products..

[growalot]

So what do they then do when these ants not only take on honey bee characteristics BUT maintain or increase ants eating green material and other bugs. they also have a higher propensity to protect their rather large mobile colonies...Ya this isn't TOO awfully scarey !

 

 

How big can an ant colony get and how many ants are in the colony?

The physical size of an ant colony can differ very dramatically from one colony to the next as can the number of ants that live there. How big a colony gets depends upon the resources near the colony, as well as the surrounding environment, but it also depends heavily on the type of ant species. Some species of ants simply do not create large colonies, while other species do not even nest in the ground. Many species make their ant nest inside of trees or wood, and some even make their colonies inside of acorns! With that being said, ant colonies can range in size from one as small as an acorn, and depending on how you define "colony" as large as 3,728 miles.

The current record holder (it's actually in the Guiness Book of World Records) for the largest ant colony belongs to an Argentine Ant super colony in Europe that covers an incredible 3,728 miles from Italy to Portagul and is estimated to consist of over a billion ants! However, this claim is misleading because it gives the impression that it is one giant nest and that there are continuous underground tunnels connecting the entire length of the super colony. This is not case. The ant colonies are not physically connected, but are made up of numerous different nests across many different countries.

 

Ants might possible have the most diverse diet in all of the animal kingdom. Ants will literally eat almost anything. There are over 12,000 species of ants, and while an individual species of ant may have a relatively limited diet, collectively their diet is incredibly diverse.

Ants are omnivours, and can eat just about anything a person can eat. This includes all of the four food groups and just about anything else in your kitchen that is left out! That means fruits, vegetables, meats, dairy, sugars, oils, herbs, nuts, juice, etc. are all on the menu for ants.

 

Edited June 16, 2015 by growalot

[Curmudgeon]

Organic, is a joke do you actually know what they consider organic? Look up the regs, unless you grow it yourself I would question all organic products..

 

Right - you can get organic stuff from China where they put melamine in the baby formula. However, I do know that the flour from wheat grown in the Champlain Valley that comes into the house in 25# bags has not been sprayed with glyphosate just before harvest.

 

[G-Man]

It's can be sprayed when it's growing with a myriad of chemicals and still be sold as organic... it's sad, like advertising low fat.. .001 the n regular product and it's low fat... trusting the usa is like trusting the government to take care of you... don't get me wrong there are some benifits but take everything with grain of salt

[Curmudgeon]

I haven't looked at the organic standards since they were in draft form and comments were being received. It isn't about trusting the government, it is about trusting organizations like NOFA. My brother is currently trying to get organic certification. It isn't that easy.

 

I am not religious about buying organic products. I try to make good choices for our health and the planet. At home I don't buy any industrial meat. I care about what species of fish I buy - and where it came from.

 

Organic is generally a better choice than non. Locally produced is often a better choice - organic or not. It keeps money in local and supports family scale farmers. Organic can be produced at an industrial scale, and transported long distances - from places like China.

 

My wife and I grow much of our own food including more than enough fruit to make it through most years. This June we are buying fruit because last year's crop of apples ran out a couple of weeks ago. The blueberries are a couple of weeks off and there aren't enough strawberries to get by.

[goosifer]

On 6/15/2015 at 11:07 AM, Curmudgeon said:

There is a hot controversy right now about glyphosate - the active ingredient in Roundup -being carcinogenic. As far as no residue, a study in Europe found glyphosate residue in 44% of urine samples from people from 18 countries. It is now banned in France. See - http://www.theguardian.com/cities/2015/apr/21/glyphosate-probably-carcinogenic-pesticide-why-cities-use-it . . . .

 

I came across this article that says it has made a direct link between glyphosate and liver cancer. article

I really would like to find an alternative to glyphosate other than 10% vinegar. I wonder what they use in France.

Edited February 10, 2017 by goosifer
typo

[growalot]

Starting out right...there are several cover crop species that have nature weed suppressing "chemicals" in their structure. These are called Allelopathic traits. You just need to research which are the best to plant and incorporate into a rotational system...For they can also effect the crops you want...so read, read, read.....

http://www.organicagcentre.ca/Extension/ext_weed_allelopathic.asp

https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/hs186

http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1081/CSS-200056933?scroll=top&needAccess=true&journalCode=lcss20

 

[goosifer]

 Thanks, grow. I was hoping for more of a Huey Lewis solution . . .

 

I want a new drug