Tank Mixing for Success

Jim ReissVice President – Agricultural ChemistriesPrecision Laboratories, Inc.

• 50 Year-Old Company • Located in Waukegan, IL • Innovative Adjuvants, Seed Enhancements

and Foliar Nutrition Technologies• Backed by University & Independent Research

3

9 weeds in 20+ states are resistant to glyphosate • Over 7 million acres of row crops infested in 2010

• 38 million by 2013 (spread by pollen 20-30 miles)

Stacked resistance not just for crops• Triple-stacked & Quad-stacked resistance in weeds• ALS inhibitors, glyphosate, PPO inhibitors and triazines (S. IL)

Trends support continued growth in resistance • Larger farms with less tillage• Post applications of glyphosate year after year

Resistance is GROWING

Weed Science, principles and practices; Applied Weed Science, second edition; Weed Ecology, second edition; Weed Technology

Weed Seed Production and Length of Seed Survival

Weed# of Seeds per

PlantLength of Seed Survival (yrs)

Nightshade 178,000 10 - 20

G. Ragweed 60,000 5 - 8

Lambsquarters 72,000 3 - 9

Marestail 200,000 +Short - Immediate

germination

Waterhemp 400,000 + 3 - 5

Palmer Amaranth 500,000 + 3 - 5

11

PPI and PRE treatments growing • Tank mixing with UAN and / or ATS• New SC formulations not be as stable as Flowables

More post emerge tank mixing • PREs can’t handle all our problems (volunteer corn)• More use of foliar feeding program

• More fungicides & / or insecticides

More tank mixes = more problems… UNLESS

Tank Mixing is BACK

Preparing to Win Objectives

• Review “Best Mixing” Practices

• Review impact of water quality on pesticides and mixing order

• Determine best mixing sequence & tools to avoid problems

• Answer your questions

Avoiding Mixing & Clean-out Nightmares

• Mixing Technique

• Mixing Order

• Making Clean-out Easier

Just because you can… DOESN’T mean you should!

Mixing Vats & Inductors are Not Like Las Vegas

• What happens here, DOESN’T just stay here…

• It goes into the sprayer…

• And, if your lucky it goes onto the field

Inductors & Mixing Vats Bad Things Start Here

• In the absence of sufficient water, mixing order doesn’t matter

• Sometimes a little water is worse than no water

• Depending on solution pH some products may not dissolve, others could salt out

Roundup® WeatherMAX™

plus

Water Conditioning Agent

SALTED OUT in mixing vat

Inductors & Mixing Vats The Solution

• Or, open the valve and leave it open

• Mix in a minimum of 15-20% of intended spray volume

• Conduct compatibility tests to make sure

• Follow the appropriate mixing order & WAIT

• pH can affect CP half-life

• pH can affect CP product solubility & uptake

• pH levels should affect the mixing order

Mixing Order & Water Quality

• What’s the pH of your water?

Mixing Order & Water Quality

pH Scale

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14

Natural pH of well water

Mixing Order & Water Quality

pH Scale

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14

CompatibilityAgents

Natural pH of well water

Mixing Order & Water Quality

pH Scale

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14

Compatibility Best pH to solubilize most SUsAgents

Natural pH of well water

Mixing Order & Water Quality

pH Scale

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14

Best pH to solubilize most SUs

Natural pH of well water

Water Conditioners alone

Mixing Order & Water Quality

pH Scale

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14

Glyphosate buffer Best pH to solubilize most SUs

Natural pH of well water

Water Conditioners alone

Mixing Order & Water Quality

Do you have to add water conditioners to the spray solution before glyphosate?

Mixing Order & Water Quality

SEQUENCE OF TANK-MIXING WATER CONDITIONING ADJUVANTS AND HERBICIDES

John D. Nalewaja1, Zenon Wonica2, Edward F. Szeleznak3, Brad Ramsdale4

1 Plant Sciences, North Dakota State University, Fargo, ND2 Agricultural Academy, Poznan, Poland

3 Crop and Weed Sciences, Pulawy, Poland4 Department of Plant Science, California State University, Fresno, CA

Glyphosate (IPA), 2,4-D (DMA), Dicamba, (Na) Bentazon (Na)

Out of Mixing Order… Out of Luck!

Fill tank with at least ½ of intended finished spray volume and with agitation running, add:

• Compatibility agents & defoamers• Add Sulfonylurea herbicides before reducing pH (or pre slurry and add)

• Dry Products– Ammonium sulfate – Dry drift retardants– WP, DF, WDG, SP

• Liquids – Liquid drift retardants– Flowables (F) or Liquid Flowables (FL) – Micro encapsulated (ME) and Suspension Concentrates (SC)– Emulsifiable concentrates (EC)– Solutions (L, C, LC)– Crop Oils, MSO, HSOC, NIS– Water Conditioners

Best Mixing Sequence

Fill tank with at least ½ of intended finished spray volume and with agitation running, add:

• Compatibility agents & defoamers• Add Sulfonylurea herbicides before reducing pH (or pre slurry and add)

• Dry Products– Ammonium sulfate – Dry drift retardants– WP, DF, WDG, SP

• Liquids – Liquid drift retardants– Flowables (F) or Liquid Flowables (FL) – Micro encapsulated (ME) and Suspension Concentrates (SC)– Emulsifiable concentrates (EC)– Solutions (L, C, LC)– Crop Oils, MSO, HSOC, NIS– Water Conditioners

Best Mixing Sequence

NIS 90:10 Border Xtra 8L Atrazine 4L Halex GT

Protyx Border Xtra 8L Atrazine 4L Halex GT

Border Xtra 8L Atrazine 4L Halex GT NIS 90:10

Atrazine 4L Border Xtra 8L Halex GT NIS 90:10

Atrazine 4L Border Xtra 8L Halex GT Protyx

Syngenta Recommendation

Fill tank with at least ½ of intended finished spray volume and with agitation running, add:

• Compatibility agents & defoamers• Add Sulfonylurea herbicides before reducing pH (or pre slurry and add)

• Dry Products– Ammonium sulfate – Dry drift retardants– WP, DF, WDG, SP

• Liquids – Liquid drift retardants– Flowables (F) or Liquid Flowables (FL) – Micro encapsulated (ME) and Suspension Concentrates (SC)– Emulsifiable concentrates (EC)– Solutions (L, C, LC)– Crop Oils, MSO, HSOC, NIS– Water Conditioners

Best Mixing Sequence

• Available for the iPhone and iPod touch

(Android version coming Spring 2012)

• Eliminates costly mixing errors

• Database of more than 900 crop protection products from 18 manufacturers

• Mixing sequence in one location

Iphone App

Making Clean-Out Easier • Not all contamination

comes from the spray tank

• Spray booms trap contaminants for later apps

• Preventative strategy and compatibility agents are best strategy

Convert TM Compatibility

Agent

Competitive Compatibility

Agent

No Compatibility Agent

UAN / ATS plus Guardsman® Max Tank Mix

• Prevention is key

• Use compatibility agents with UAN & PRE apps

• Tank cleaners can’t remove everything left behind

Making Clean-Out Easier

• Flush sprayers at end of each day

Demonstrating Your Valueat the Farm-Gate

Acres per Day 400

Sprayer Down 1 day

Yield loss for every inchweeds grow* 1 bushel

Rained-out 4 days

Weeds grew 2 inches

Lost Yield per Acre 2 bushels

Soybean value $12.00 per bushel

Lost Revenue $9,600

* Southern Illinois University data

Demonstrating Your Valueat the Farm-Gate

Acres per Day 400

Sprayer Down 1 day

Yield loss for every inchweeds grow* 1 bushel

Rained-out 4 days

Weeds grew 2 inches

Lost Yield per Acre 2 bushels

Soybean value $12.00 per bushel

Lost Revenue $9,600

* Southern Illinois University data

Demonstrating Your Valueat the Farm-Gate

Acres per Day 400

Sprayer Down 1 day

Yield loss for every inchweeds grow* 1 bushel

Rained-out 4 days

Weeds grew 2 inches

Lost Yield per Acre 2 bushels

Soybean value $12.00 per bushel

Lost Revenue $9,600

* Southern Illinois University data

Demonstrating Your Valueat the Farm-Gate

• Review “Best Mixing” Practices

• Review impact of water quality on pesticides and mixing order

• Add to your differentiation at the farm-gate

• Answer your questions

Preparing to Win Objectives

www.youtube.com/mixtankapp – Mixing Sequence – 3:02 minutes– Spray Solution pH – 2:16 minutes– Water Conditioners – 5:22 minutes– Water Quality – 2:34 minutes

Additional Resources

Tank Mixing for Success

Jim ReissVice President – Agricultural ChemistriesPrecision Laboratories, Inc.