# Nutsedge in Alfalfa chemical control



## Apm1026 (Feb 11, 2012)

Is anybody having success in non RR conventional Alfalfa controlling yellow nutsedge? Pre emerge or post ??


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## FarmerCline (Oct 12, 2011)

Pursuit is supposed to give some control or suppression on yellow nutsedge. I use Pursuit with good results for broadleaf weeds in alfalfa but I haven't had a nutsedge problem in alfalfa so I can't say how well it works on it.

Basagran is the best thing I have found for complete nutsedge control but it isn't labeled for alfalfa. However Basagran won't kill alfalfa.....might speckle up the leaves a bit like it does on soybeans but it soon grows out of that. I found this out when spraying a field of soybeans and hanging the boom a little over into the adjacent alfalfa field.


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## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

Good to know Hayden.

Regards, Mike


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## swmnhay (Jun 13, 2008)

Ditto on the basagran.I used a lot of Basagran on soybeans before Roundup and Pursuit were available.It worked great on Yellow Nutsedge,Canadian thistles,cocklebur and even cattails.

It got most of the broadleaf weeds but didn't get nightshade,sandburr,water hemp.We started using Galaxy which is a Basagran/Blazer mix..I did swing the spray boom over some new seeding alfalfa to see if it would kill the alfalfa and it didn't ,but I don't think it's labeled for alfalfa.


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## swmnhay (Jun 13, 2008)

Pursuit and Raptor are labeled for alfalfa but are rated poor for yellownutsedge.

http://www2.ca.uky.edu/agcomm/pubs/agr/agr148/agr148.pdf


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## Bonfire (Oct 21, 2012)

swmnhay said:


> Ditto on the basagran.I used a lot of Basagran on soybeans before Roundup and Pursuit were available.It worked great on Yellow Nutsedge,Canadian thistles,cocklebur and even cattails.
> It got most of the broadleaf weeds but didn't get nightshade,sandburr,water hemp.We started using Galaxy which is a Basagran/Blazer mix..I did swing the spray boom over some new seeding alfalfa to see if it would kill the alfalfa and it didn't ,but I don't think it's labeled for alfalfa.


Lol. Where you doing some quick math in your head to figure value/risk of loss and how many nozzles you should push over there?


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## swmnhay (Jun 13, 2008)

Bonfire said:


> Lol. Where you doing some quick math in your head to figure value/risk of loss and how many nozzles you should push over there?


I only did maybe 200 sq ft for the test


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## Bruce Hopf (Jun 29, 2016)

Found out before Christmas, from my seed rep, that I have a Nutsedge problem, on my farm, that I bought, this time last year. I planted 20 acres, of Spring Wheat, as a cover crop, for Alfalfa Timothy, White Clover, mixed, and Brome Grass. 
I even had my crops sprayed, but with the drought we had here, it stunted the groath of the Alfalfa, that the Nutsedge took over, smothering out the Alfalfa, in a lot of places, in the 20 acres, I had planted.
Seed rep says, we can spray Roundup, in the Spring, rip everything up, a d plan Soybeans, and spray again, once the Soybeans, are ready to spray, and kill off, the Nutsedge.
What I'm hoping to do, is spray something else, use my Diamond Harrow, to Loosen up the top of the soil, and Direct Seed, Alfalfa, Timothy, White Clover mix, and Brome seed, aND use the exsitting hay, and grass, planted last spring, as a cover crop, a d once the hay, and grass, is growing, hit it again, and hope to kill the Nutsedge, that way.
Will this work, or No? Thanks in advance. Bruce.


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## FarmerCline (Oct 12, 2011)

Bruce Hopf said:


> Found out before Christmas, from my seed rep, that I have a Nutsedge problem, on my farm, that I bought, this time last year. I planted 20 acres, of Spring Wheat, as a cover crop, for Alfalfa Timothy, White Clover, mixed, and Brome Grass.
> I even had my crops sprayed, but with the drought we had here, it stunted the groath of the Alfalfa, that the Nutsedge took over, smothering out the Alfalfa, in a lot of places, in the 20 acres, I had planted.
> Seed rep says, we can spray Roundup, in the Spring, rip everything up, a d plan Soybeans, and spray again, once the Soybeans, are ready to spray, and kill off, the Nutsedge.
> What I'm hoping to do, is spray something else, use my Diamond Harrow, to Loosen up the top of the soil, and Direct Seed, Alfalfa, Timothy, White Clover mix, and Brome seed, aND use the exsitting hay, and grass, planted last spring, as a cover crop, a d once the hay, and grass, is growing, hit it again, and hope to kill the Nutsedge, that way.
> Will this work, or No? Thanks in advance. Bruce.


 If it were me I would for sure get the nutsedge under control before I planted more alfalfa and grass. It doesn't sound like you have enough of a stand left to keep so I would spray with roundup and basagran next spring and no till soybeans. I would not work the ground as that will only spread the nutsedge roots and make the problem even worse. Roundup is only fair at controlling nutssedge but two applications of basagran will really knock it back. If it is a bad infestation the first application of basagran will kill a lot of it but it will try to regrow from the roots so it will take another application over the top of the beans to really do a good job.


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