Text Box: Fall Weed Treatment 2003 (continued) Text Box: Managing Field Bindweed Text Box: Cowley County Noxious Weed Department Text Box: Page # Text Box: August 28, 2003 Text Box: The perennial field bindweed destroys crops and can lower net profit because it is so aggressive and persistent. The weed’s ability to reproduce in semi-arid conditions makes it tough for farmers across the Great Plains. And like any perennial weed, it must be controlled in a planned manner. Field bindweed can produce 500,000 seeds per acre and the seeds remain viable for up to 60 years. While seedlings menace your farm, it’s what you can’t see that can really hurt you. Bindweed can send a root system 30 feet deep. A tough, deep-rooted “mother plant” spawns an array of new shoots. The roots are like a food bank, nourishing new growth from shoots. Once new shoots form new leaves, they start replenishing the colony in 12 to 16 days, sending nutrients back down into the system. The roots can steal moisture which limits crop yields, even when crops themselves cannot reach soil moisture. Controlling the root system is the goal of any effective bindweed management program. Recommendations for control of Field Bindweed: 1. The most effective control program includes preventive measures over several years. 2. Banvel, Tordon, 2,4-D, roundup products alone or in various combinations are registered for suppression or control of field bindweed in fallow and/or in certain crops, pastures, and rangeland. Apply each herbicide or herbicide mixture according to directions, warnings, and precautions on the product labels. Single herbicide applications rarely eliminate established bindweed stands. 3. Applications of 2,4-D, Roundup products are most effective when spring applied to vigorously growing field bindweed in mid to full bloom. However, Banvel and Tordon applications are most effective when applied in the fall. Most herbicide treatments are least effective when applied in mid-summer or when bindweed plants are stressed. Text Box: Above: Field Bindweed seedling. Below: Field Bindweed leaf and flower Text Box: “Field Bindweed can produce 500,000 seeds per acre and seeds can remain viable for 60 years”