In the last 2 weeks, there have been a lot of peanuts planted in our area. Many have cracked the ground like the one in the picture above. Some growers will be preparing for “burndown” sprays soon to help control early season weeds and put out more residual herbicide.
One common “burndown” spray for peanuts that provides broad spectrum weed control is the combination of Gramoxone (paraquat) + Storm (bentazon + acifluorfen). Here are a few tips from the UGA Pest Control Handbook for this spray:
1. Apply anytime up to 28 days after ground crack.
2. Be sure to use a nonionic surfactant with this spray at the rate of 0.25% v/v, which means 1 quart of surfactant for every 100 gallons of spray solution.
3. The success of “at-crack” sprays can be greatly improved by applying herbicides in a minimum of 15 gallons of water per acre, using flat fan nozzles, decreasing ground speed, and using lower spray pressures (~30 psi).
4. You can add a residual herbicide to this spray such as Warrant, Dual Magnum, or generic metolachlor. If you decide to add Dual Magnum or generic metolachlor, the use of nonionic surfactant is not recommended for this mixture.