As weed resistance increases and diseases and insects make their way through the Corn Belt, no-tillers are facing growing pressure to protect their crops and yields amidst a down ag economy.

Several crop protection companies have released new fungicides, herbicides, insecticides and seed treatments designed to control yield-robbing pests like glyphosate-resistant Palmer amaranth, seedling diseases, corn rootworms and soybean aphids.

Compiled on the following pages are the newest products available for 2017, or expect to receive EPA registration in time for the upcoming growing season.

Fungicides

Designed to mix directly with liquid starter fertilizers for planting, AZteroid FC is an azoxystrobin fungicide from Vive Crop Protection that offers broad-spectrum, early-season control for in-furrow application of corn, soybeans, sugarbeets, cereals and other crops.

It controls soil-borne and seedling diseases, including Northern corn leaf blight, Southern rust, rhizoctonia root rot, stalk rot, powdery mildew and sclerotinia stem rot among others. AZteroid FC can also be used in foliar applications and mixed with Vive’s Bifender FC for control of both seedling diseases and insect pests.

Helm Agro’s HelmStar Plus SC fungicide is a pre-mix of tebuconazole and azoxystrobin, two systemic active ingredients for disease control in corn and soybeans.

Providing preventive and curative activity, it also works as a residual barrier to inhibit new diseases from occurring. Diseases controlled include Northern and Southern corn leaf blights, anthracnose leaf blight and gray leaf spot in corn, as well as soybean rust, frogeye leaf spot, brown spot and powdery mildew in soybeans.

Both a fungicide…