# Need more advice on foxtails...



## hatefoxtails! (Jul 20, 2010)

Some advice I received was to use Prefix or Sencor in the fall after the cool season grasses went dormant to control foxtails. I am having trouble obtaining these products because the Grange tells me they are not labeled for grass pasture. Any suggestions?

What are your thoughts on Kerb? The foxtails are on the periphery and I would just spray where the foxtails are. I am not getting a lot of encouragement as to the availability of this product.

Ok, Thanks!


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## carcajou (Jan 28, 2011)

It's been a while since i applied any kerb but yes it will work on foxtail barley. Kerb is a pain to keep in suspension, you need lots of agitation, no screens, and large nozzles ( i prefer floodjets ). Read the label carefully, there is a 60 day grazing restriction and it has to be applied after dormancy. Any other questions?


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## mlappin (Jun 25, 2009)

You could try like a friend of mine does that went organic with his dairy. First thing in the spring when he notices something he doesn't want in his pastures he either runs the bush hog over them before they ever have a chance to goto seed, or if it's just an undesirable grass he mows it with his moco and bales it before it sets seed heads. I've baled and fed foxtail to my beef cows before and it feeds good if it hasn't gone to seed yet.


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## rjmoses (Apr 4, 2010)

Both Prefix and Sencor are pre-emergent weed control herbicides.

Sygenta Prefix is S-metolachlor combined with fomasafen and is labeled only for soybeans. S-metolachlor is the main ingredient in Dual Magnum which is labeled for cool season grasses (fescue, orchardgrass) grown for seed.

S-metolachlor has a residual life of up to 18 months, so it should only be used where the field will not be rotated into another crop in the next two years.

Many times a company will label a product for only a limited use, like beans, because the cost of labeling for multiple crops becomes so expensive. Prefix is about 1/2 the price of Dual Magnum.

Sencor, which is metribuzin, is labeled for beans, while Metribuzin is also labeled for grasses grown for seed. It also has a high residual.

Both need to be applied in the fall, after cool season grasses have gone dormant to prevent crop injury.

I find that mowing just after seed heads have started to appear, combined with an effective fertilizer program (and some luck) can help control weeds like foxtail. Foxtail, mowed before the seeds harden, can be a good forage.

Hope this helps

Ralph


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## will (Jul 30, 2008)

I have had horse people tell me that foxtail causes blisters in the horses mouths. Anyone know anything about that?


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## CantonHayGuy (Sep 25, 2008)

will said:


> I have had horse people tell me that foxtail causes blisters in the horses mouths. Anyone know anything about that?


I know there are different forms of foxtails, so this may not be the same for all types, but... to my knowledge foxtails (the seed part) has micro serations (if you will) that enable them to burrow into the flesh. If the foxtail doesn't get ground up between the teeth and swallowed, then remains in the mouth that is where the problem lies. I suppose if the foxtail makes it to the stomach, the acid will take care of it before it is a problem.


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## Hogleg (Dec 20, 2009)

Foxtail can be a high nutrition feed early in the life cycle, but later, when the seed heads are fully formed, it is not good for horses. I had some that I bought in some second cutting alfalfa that caused embedded seed heads in the mouth/throat areas. You will notice this because the horses will start slobbering a pink color and it drips on stuff. Easy to fix, just remove the bad hay and they will recover. In my case, there was a patch of field that was too wet to cut on the first cut so they caught it on the second. Poor haymaking practice for horse hay. I cut my own horse hay now to control quality.

I agree that early cutting is a better practice than the chemical route. I completely avoid some of the newer chemicals that leave residual in the manure.

Milestone Herbicide Creates Killer Compost

John


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