No CrossRef data available.
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 21 April 2025
Vegetable production on plastic mulch in Georgia often combines fumigation, drip tape, raised beds, and plastic mulch, where 3 to 5 high-value crops are produced over two years. With the elimination of methyl bromide as a soil fumigant, herbicides applied over plastic mulch prior to transplanting a crop have become essential to maintain weed control. However, proper care must be taken to avoid crop damage from any herbicide residue. Experiments using simulated vegetable beds, covered with totally impermeable film (TIF) were conducted to quantify the concentration of halosulfuron-methyl, glufosinate, glyphosate, S-metolachlor, and acetochlor remaining on the mulch, and quantify the amount of each that moved into the crop transplant hole when irrigation water was applied. When irrigating with 0.63-cm of water, <2% of halosulfuron-methyl, glufosinate, and glyphosate remained on the surface of the TIF. In contrast, 91 and 15% of acetochlor remained on the TIF after irrigating with 0.63 and 1.27-cm of water, respectively. For S-metolachlor, 17 and 3% remained after the aforementioned irrigation volumes, respectively. The order of concentration detected in the transplant hole was equivalent to ranking the herbicides by water-solubility: glyphosate > glufosinate > halosulfuron-methyl > S-metolachlor > acetochlor. All herbicide concentrations were below 1.0 mg ai or ae in the transplant hole regardless of irrigation volume. For halosulfuron, glyphosate, and glufosinate these concentrations were equal to a 1.3 to 8.9 times the field use rate washing into the transplant hole. Acetochlor and S-metolachlor concentrations in the transplant hole were equivalent to 0.1 to 0.7x of field use rates, respectively. With further evaluations, the quantified herbicide concentrations in the transplant hole can be used to make changes to recommended rates and potentially create new options for growers to utilize.