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Prevent resistance and control weeds with LibertyLink.
With a new planting season near, talk of glyphosate-resistant weeds is again on growers' minds. Two Nebraska families feel they've solved the problem before it hits their farms.
They now grow LibertyLink corn on most of their corn acres, both to prevent resistance problems and to ward off troublesome weeds that glyphosate could not always handle.
"We first used LibertyLink corn in 2004 to cleanup shattercane," says David Rasmussen, who farms with his brother, Dan, and father, Larry, in Albion, NE. "We planted more of it in 2005 and will have more in 2006."
Other Albion growers, Bryce Naber and his father, Loren, are now planting at least 75% LibertyLink corn. "We've received good control on almost all weeds," says Bryce. "We still have some problems with sandburs, but everything is weak on sandburs."
LibertyLink transgenic corn has been around since the late 1990s. The corn is resistant to Liberty herbicide (glufosinate) from Bayer CropScience. The post-emergence over-the-top applied herbicide is successful against most weeds.
Like Roundup Ready (glyphosate) corn from Monsanto, LibertyLink is designed to ease the weed control burden for growers. Both the Nabers and Rasmussens have worked LibertyLink corn in their rotation with Roundup Ready soybeans. Their aim is to control velvet leaf, waterhemp, cocklebur, sunflower, sandbur, foxtail, shattercane, butterweed and other regional weeds. They are also trying to prevent herbicide resistance.
"The potential for waterhemp or marestail resistance...