Acetanilide Activity and Dissipation as Influenced by Formulation and Wheat Stubble

Abstract

Laboratory and field research was conducted to determine the influence of winter wheat (Triticum aestivumL.) stubble on weed control and the dissipation of emulsifiable concentrate formulations (EC) of metolachlor [2-chloro-N-(2-ethyl-6-methylphenyl)-N-(2-methoxy-1-methylethyl) acetamide], alachlor [2-chloro-N-(2,6-diethylphenyl)-N-(methoxymethyl)acetamide], and acetochlor [2-chloro-N-(ethoxymethyl)-N-(2-ethyl-6-methylphenyl)acetamide]; and microencapsulated formulations (ME) of alachlor and acetochlor. EC metolachlor provided better weed control than EC alachlor when applied 28 days before planting sorghum (Sorghum bicolorL.) and similar weed control when applied at 1 or 14 days before planting. This difference was attributed to more rapid EC alachlor dissipation. The order of relative herbicide persistence at 24 C and 33% (w/w) soil moisture in a silty clay loam was ME acetochlor = ME alachlor > EC metolachlor > EC acetochlor = EC alachlor. Acetanilide degradation was affected more by increasing temperature from 15 to 24 C than by increasing soil moisture from 15 to 33%. More herbicide was washed from overwintered than fresh straw in the first 1 cm of simulated rainfall. In the first simulated rainfall event, more herbicide was removed from straw that had been dry than wet at application, but the amount of herbicide remaining on dry and wet straw was similar after four events. Formulation generally did not affect herbicide wash-off.