Pre-emergence herbicides for maize crops

Unlocking Maize's Full Potential

"Pre-emergence herbicides for maize crops" is an innovative agricultural technology designed to improve weed management in maize cultivation across Sub-Saharan Africa. This technology enhances maize crop performance during its critical early growth stages by applying chemical agents to prevent weed seedlings from developing roots. By effectively reducing weed encroachment and competition for vital resources such as light, nutrients, and moisture, this technology accelerates the growth of maize crops and ultimately increases grain yields. It provides a cost-effective and sustainable solution to address the challenges associated with high weed infestation, labor-intensive weed removal, and reduced maize grain productivity in the region.

This technology is TAAT1 validated.

7•7

Scaling readiness: idea maturity 7/9; level of use 7/9

Adults 18 and over: Positive high

The poor: Positive medium

Under 18: Positive low

Women: Positive low

Climate adaptability: Highly adaptable

Farmer climate change readiness: Significant improvement

Carbon footprint: Same amount of carbon released

Environmental health: Greatly improves environmental health

Water use: A bit less water used

Biodiversity: Harms biodiversity

Problem

High Weed Encroachment: Weeds in farmlands across Sub-Saharan Africa are a significant problem, leading to the loss of water and nutrients from the soil, reducing grain yields and returns on investments in agriculture.
Labor-Intensive Weed Removal: Manual or mechanical weed removal is labor-intensive and expensive, often requiring 2-3 repetitions to effectively control weed encroachment.
Risk of Weed Seed Dispersal: Other weed control methods may inadvertently promote seed dispersal from weeds, resulting in long-term issues and recurrent herbicide use.
Necessity for Multiple Herbicide Applications: In areas with high weed encroachment, multiple herbicide applications are often needed throughout the growing season, making early-stage control important to increase the effectiveness of post-emergence herbicides.
Regional Variability: The specific formulation of chemical agents and timing of herbicide application can vary based on the types of weeds present, local weather patterns, and farming practices.

Solution

Effective Weed Control: Pre-emergence herbicides prevent weed growth during the critical early stages of maize development, reducing competition for light, nutrients, and moisture.
Increased Grain Productivity: By eliminating weed competition, these herbicides significantly increase maize grain yields, making them a valuable tool for improving food production.
Fertilizer Efficiency: Maize crops treated with pre-emergence herbicides demonstrate improved fertilizer efficiency, ensuring that applied nutrients are used more effectively by the crop.
Resilience to Drought: The use of pre-emergence herbicides enhances maize crop resilience to drought conditions, a crucial advantage for regions with erratic rainfall patterns.
Seed Dispersal Prevention: Pre-emergence herbicides virtually eliminate the seed dispersal of weeds, leading to long-term reductions in weed encroachment and less need for recurrent herbicide use and labor.
Enhanced Effectiveness of Post-Emergence Herbicides: Early-stage weed control through pre-emergence herbicides complements the effectiveness of post-emergence herbicides, particularly in areas with high weed encroachment.
Reduced Time Pressure for Pest Control: By preventing weed damage during the initial growth stages, pre-emergence herbicides alleviate time pressures for additional pest control measures during the growing season.
Suitability for Various Climates: Pre-emergence herbicides are effective in a range of climates, from humid to semi-arid, and offer short- and long-term benefits in weed management.
Customizable Formulations: Different herbicide formulations are available to address specific weed types found in maize crops, allowing farmers to choose the most suitable option.
Enhanced Herbicidal Activity: Adjuvants can be added to herbicide formulations to improve herbicidal activity, making the application process more efficient and effective.
Food Security and Soil Fertility: Pre-emergence herbicides, when combined with proper soil fertility management, contribute to increased grain production and food security, particularly in regions with degraded soils and low fertility.

Key points to design your project

Pre-emergence herbicides technology prevents early weed growth in maize fields, boosting grain productivity and fertilizer efficiency while enhancing resilience to drought. It also minimizes the need for recurrent herbicide use, reducing labor and promoting gender equality in agriculture. This aligns with Sustainable Development Goals, particularly those related to food security and climate resilience.

To incorporate this technology into your project, it is imperative to delineate a series of project activities and prerequisites:

Facilitate the marketing of pre-emergence herbicides by agro-input dealers in regions where prevalent weed species pose a challenge.
Conduct awareness campaigns among farmers to underscore the advantages of employing chemical control methods for enhancing food production and mitigating risks.
Provide financial backing to local suppliers and smallholder farmers to incentivize investments in pre-emergence herbicides.
Ensure compliance of the technology with national pesticide regulations and obtain requisite authorizations from relevant authorities.
Estimate the required quantity of technology for the project, factoring in delivery costs to project sites across Cameroon, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia, as well as potential import clearance and duties.
Incorporate the cost of pre-emergence herbicides and labor for their application into the project budget, with a rate of USD 27 per hectare for blends of pendimethalin and atrazine, and USD 25 per hectare for blends of metolachlor and atrazine, utilizing 1 kilogram of active ingredient per hectare, estimated at USD 20 per liter.
Allocate funds for training and post-training support to ensure effective utilization of the technology.
Develop communication materials, such as flyers, videos, and radio broadcasts, to promote the adoption of the technology.
To implement this technology within your country, consider forming partnerships with agricultural development institutes, fertilizer suppliers, and agricultural service companies to provide support and facilitate distribution.
For better optimization of the improved maize variety, it is recommended to associate with Drought tolerant varieties (DTMA, WEMA, others), Golden maize varieties (High provitamin A), Specialized pre-plant fertilizer blending and N topdressing, Maize-legume rotation and intercropping, Fall armyworm control in maize production (e.g. FORTENZATM Duo)

Cost: $$$ 27 USD

Application of pre-emergence herbicide/Ha

ROI: $$$ 61—80 %

Reduction in weeds

0.7 - 1.6 Ton per hectare

Grain yield increase

349 USD

Gross margin per hectare

IP

Open source / open access

Countries with a green colour: Tested & adopted
Countries with a bright green colour: Adopted
Countries with a yellow colour: Tested
Countries with a blue colour: Testing ongoing

Countries where the technology is being tested or has been tested and adopted
Country	Testing ongoing	Tested	Adopted
Cameroon	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Ethiopia	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Ghana	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Kenya	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Malawi	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Nigeria	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Rwanda	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
South Africa	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Tanzania	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Uganda	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Zambia	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted

This technology can be used in the colored agro-ecological zones. Any zones shown in white are not suitable for this technology.

Agro-ecological zones where this technology can be used
AEZ	Subtropic - warm	Subtropic - cool	Tropic - warm	Tropic - cool
Arid
Semiarid
Subhumid
Humid

Source: HarvestChoice/IFPRI 2009

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals that are applicable to this technology.

Goal 2: zero hunger

Goal 5: gender equality

Goal 13: climate action

Dilution of Herbicides: Start by diluting concentrated herbicides in water according to the prescribed ratio and following recommended safety precautions. This ensures the chemical agents are properly activated.
Application Equipment: Herbicide solutions can be applied to farmer fields using either backpack systems with one or two spraying nozzles or tractor-mounted systems equipped with multiple spraying nozzles. The choice of equipment significantly affects herbicide placement, the effectiveness of weed control, and labor requirements.
Protective Clothing: Workers applying herbicides should wear appropriate protective clothing to avoid direct contact with chemical agents. This includes gloves, masks, and other protective gear.
Soil Moisture: Ensure that the soil is at an optimal moisture level for herbicide application. It should be moist but not too wet or too dry. The timing of herbicide application should be synchronized with rainfall or carried out approximately one week after tilling the croplands but no later than when maize plants are 10 cm tall.
Field Selection: Prioritize the use of chemical weed control management technologies on fields with the highest levels of weed encroachment and the presence of difficult-to-control weed species. This approach maximizes the potential for yield and income gain and helps steadily reduce weed infestations on farms.