Last summer, I was called out to view what appeared to be a herbicide drift incidence in a commercial tomato field. The leaves of affected plants were distorted with cupping and twisting that is characteristic of the growth regulator herbicides such as 2,4-D and dicamba (Figure 1). Cattails and mustard weeds growing in an adjacent drainage ditch appeared as though they had been recently sprayed with a herbicide, however, the symptoms looked to be more like that from glyphosate. (Figure 2). If these tomatoes were the unlucky recipient of drift from a Roundup application, they certainly were not expressing typical symptoms (Figure 3). Additionally, there had been no recent sprays of any herbicide made to the ditch, at least according to...

Last summer, I transplanted a tomato variety trial into a field not far from Dos Palos, an area where annual crops such as cotton, corn, tomatoes, and melons have historically dominated the agricultural landscape. The soils in this area typically are clay loams with elevated pH (> 7) as well as salinity (EC > 2). In particular, the soil at this specific location was classified as an Alros clay loam with a pH of 8 and an EC of 3.2. And this was the good part of the field!

The trial was long enough that it extended across the entire length of the field. At the south end, it terminated in an obvious alkali spot: the soil was much lighter, and the structure was that of powdered chalk. I briefly considered moving the remaining...

Here's an article by Todd Fitchette| Western Farm Press | July 17, 2014

Weed resistance issues are nothing new for university researchers and the farmers they advise.

Nevertheless, science continues to partner with agriculture to find ways to address the challenges of herbicide resistance in crops like tomatoes, melons, and a host of other agricultural applications.

The popular Weed Day at the University of California stands as a shining example of such concern. For at least the last five years. The...