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Superintendents are looking for new modes of action essential in fungicide resistance management, particullarly for pests such as dollar spot and anthracnose. In fact, agronomic experts say over the last decade the turf industry has lost some of its tools to combat outbreaks due to fungicide resistance.
Here's what a few had to say about the the impact tank mixing chemicals has on creating fungicide resistance among pathogens.
- “Tank mixing in and of itself does not weaken fungicides. Tank mixtures (or pre-mixes) must consist of active ingredients with proven activity against the target disease to be of benefit from a resistance management perspective. One can tank mix fungicides to control a broader spectrum of diseases. If a superintendent is not careful this can lead to enhanced selection for resistance if only one of the active ingredients is effective against the disease with a high propensity for resistance.” -- Dr. Charles Silcox, Product Development Manager for AMVAC Environmental Products, AMVAC Chemical Corp.
- “When you increase the type and varieties of chemicals for an application, you increase the risk of the products not working to full potential and/or some risk of the products reacting negatively with each other. Both of these outcomes can increase the risk for resistance.” -- Todd Hicks, program coordinator of The Ohio State University Turfgrass Pathology Program, Department of Plant Pathology.
- “If there is a chemical incompatibility between two products, hopefully the fungicide's manufacturer is aware of it and has listed it on the label. But these interactions are rare, that we know of at least, and I think it's much more likely that tank-mixing products will actually increase your ability to control resistant isolates, as long as the mixture contains product from different chemical classes.” -- Dr. Paul Koch, assistant professor in the Department of Plant Pathology of the Molecular and Environmental Toxicology Center of the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
For more information about fungicide resistance, and for data on recent research conducted by GCI in partnership with AMVAC, check out the September feature "Resistance Is Not Futile."
