The “stop sale” order on PCNB is still in force, but the manufacturer and other sources say there’s still life in the old product yet. Here’s an update from Dr. John Kaminski’s “Turf Diseases” blog.
We just recently caught wind of a recent development with PCNB sales for this year. Basically the US EPA had reason to believe that there were impurities in the pesticide that could have toxicological significance. Consequently the US EPA ordered a stop sale, use or removal order effective immediately for all products containing PCNB or derived from Technical Grade PCNB. The company who manufactures Technical Grade PCNB sued the US EPA in order to have the stop sale order temporarily lifted, but was denied on September 3rd. Here is an article if you want more specific information about this issue.
It is imperative to understand that this is not a permanent halt on PCNB distribution and sales. The company is seeking other alternatives within the legal system and it was emphasized in the aforementioned article that this issue is fluid. However, I do think it is important to think of an alternative to PCNB for this year. This is difficult situation because PCNB is a great snow mold product and it is inexpensive. I do think there are alternatives though. Not to beat a dead horse, but the best thing to do is to review our snow mold trials from this year.
One thing to consider is thiophanate methyl. This a.i. is frequently overlooked, but is an excellent snow mold product. Products such as Instrata and Interface have performed exceptionally well in our trials, but some course may have the budget to apply these to fairways. Mixtures of chlorothalonil, iprodione and propiconzole or chlorothalonil, iprodione and myclobutanil have performed well in our trials. Other a.i.'s that stand out are triticonazole (Trinity, BASF and Triton FLO, Bayer) and metconazole (Tourney Valent BioSciences). Unfortunately I do not know what these products cost, so my suggestion is to sit down with our reports and your local salesperson to figure out what will work for your course and budget.
This is rather unfortunate development for this year considering the condition of the economy. However, we here and willing to help develop solutions to this unfortunate situation. Please do not hesitate in contacting myself or the Turfgrass Diagnostic Lab if you need assistance!
Click HERE for images of a non-treated control, a plot treated with Tourney and Chipco 26GT and a plot treated with chlorothalonil, iprodione, and propiconazole. These pictures were taken this year at Sentryworld Golf Course in Stevens Point, Wis.
CHECK OUT John Kaminski's "Turf Diseases" blog by clicking HERE