Whitetail
Institute perennial food plot products are designed to last for multiple years
from a single planting. However, to make sure you get maximum quality,
production and longevity from your perennials, make sure you control unwanted
grasses and other weeds that appear in spring. The Whitetail Institute’s Arrest
MAX and Slay herbicides are excellent for controlling grass and broadleaf
weeds, respectively, and they’re specifically designed for food plots.
By now,
most folks already know that Arrest MAX and Slay are selective herbicides
designed to control grasses and many other weeds as part of yearly maintenance
of perennial forage stands. Below, you’ll find brief answers to common
questions about Arrest MAX and Slay. Remember, though, that the only source of
information concerning the selection and use of a herbicide you can be
absolutely certain is correct and complete is the herbicide label included as
part of the herbicide’s packaging, so read and understand it before using
Arrest MAX, Slay or any other herbicide. The Arrest MAX and Slay labels are
also available online. To find the Arrest MAX and Slay labels, go to
whitetailinstitute.com, and click on the products tab in the header. Then,
scroll down, click on herbicides and then click on Arrest MAX or Slay. You’ll
find a link to that herbicide’s label in the middle of the page.
What are Arrest MAX and
Slay? Arrest
MAX and Slay are selective herbicides, meaning they’re designed to kill or
damage certain types of grasses and other weeds without harming certain crops.
Arrest MAX controls most kinds of grass. Slay controls most kinds of
broadleaf-type weeds and some heavier sedge-type grasses that Arrest MAX isn’t
designed to handle.
What is Surefire Crop Oil Plus? Surefire Crop Oil Plus
is a tank additive designed for use with Arrest MAX and Slay. It helps the herbicide
stick to targeted plants. Surefire is vegetable-based, not petroleum-based like
some other agricultural oils. It also contains an anti-foaming agent to help
users correctly mix the spray tank. Although adding Surefire to the Arrest MAX
spray tank is not required, doing so can help Arrest MAX do an even better job
of con-trolling tough perennial or mature grasses. An adjuvant such as Surefire
must be tank-mixed into the Slay spray solution by the user for Slay to work.
Are chemicals such as
Arrest MAX and Slay the only weed-control options for perennial-forage
maintenance? Absolutely not. In fact, if you consider Arrest MAX and Slay as
stand-alone weed-control options, the results of your weed-control efforts will
surely be less than optimum. Instead, chemical weed control should be considered
as only one potential tool within a wider multi-approach strategy for keeping
weeds in check. Specifically, an effective weed-management plan will approach
weed control in three ways. The first is cultural weed control: Uniform crop
growth is the single most powerful form of weed control in any cropping system,
including food plots. Forage selection, proper soil fertility (particularly
soil pH), seedbed preparation, seeding rate, and overall growing conditions are
cultural practices that provide weed control benefits of troublesome weeds. The
second is physical (or mechanical) weed control: anything you can physically do
to remove a weed or interfere with its ability to reproduce, such as mowing
the food plot to prevent flowering and reseeding. The third is chemical: using
non-selective herbicides such as Roundup® during seedbed preparation if needed,
and selective herbicides such as Arrest MAX and/or Slay if needed and
appropriate to the forage being maintained. This concept is beautifully
explained in one of the most educational and popular articles that has appeared
in Whitetail News: “Integrated Weed Management,” by the Whitetail Institute’s
Weed and Herbicide Scientist Dr. Carroll Johnson. The article was published in Whitetail News Volume 18, No. 3, on
Page 30. You can also find it at issuu.com/whitetailinstitute/docs/wn18.3/30.
If you’ve never read it before, I urge you to do so.
Can Arrest MAX or Slay be
used to clear weeds from a food plot site before planting? Arrest MAX and Slay
aren’t designed for that. Both are selective herbicides, meaning they are only designed
to control the weeds listed on the herbicide labels. Also, unlike Arrest MAX,
Slay leaves a weed-killing residual in the soil that, according to the Slay
label, will delay a site sprayed with Slay from being replanted for a time that
varies based on the crop to be planted. Non-selective herbicides (meaning
herbicides that kill or damage every plant they touch) such as glyphosate are a
better option for clearing a seedbed before planting.
What Whitetail Institute
food plot products are approved for spraying with Arrest MAX and Slay? Arrest MAX is labeled
for use in any Whitetail Institute perennial and these Whitetail Institute
annuals: PowerPlant, Beets & Greens, Winter-Greens, Tall Tine Tubers and
Turkey Select Chufa. Slay is labeled for use in Imperial Whitetail Clover and
in any other clover or alfalfa stand.
Is it OK to spray Arrest MAX on approved forages even when
they’re very young? Yes. When used as directed, Arrest MAX will not harm Whitetail
Institute perennials, PowerPlant, Beets & Greens, Winter-Greens, Tall Tine
Tubers or Turkey Select Chufa even when the planting is very young.
When is the best time to
spray Arrest MAX and Slay? The best time to spray Arrest MAX and Slay is right after
spring green-up when grasses and weeds are still young but are actively
growing (visibly increasing in height). As with any rule, though, there are exceptions.
For example, some cool-season weeds such as chickweed might need to be sprayed
with Slay in fall. Also, Slay should not be sprayed on newly planted forages.
Is it OK to spray Slay on
approved forages even when they’re very young? No. Slay should not be
sprayed until the forage plants are no longer in the seedling stage. For
example, newly planted clover should not be sprayed with Slay until all of the
clover plants are at least three inches tall and all their leaves have
unfolded.
Will
Arrest MAX kill all kinds of grass? No. Arrest MAX will control most kinds of grass
but not all. Arrest MAX also won’t control broadleaf weeds, woody weeds or
vines. The Arrest MAX label provides a list of the grasses Arrest MAX is
designed to control. Slay will control some of the heavier sedge-type grasses
that Arrest MAX isn’t designed to control, and those are listed on the Slay
label.
Will
Slay kill all non-grassy weeds? No. Slay will control most kinds of broadleaf
weeds but not all. Slay will also control a few of the heavier sedge-type
grasses that Arrest MAX isn’t designed to control. Slay won’t control most
kinds of grasses, and it won’t control woody weeds or vines. The Slay label
provides a list of the weeds Slay is designed to control.
Should I mow the food
plot before spraying Arrest MAX and/or Slay? In most cases, no. That’s because mowing
causes grasses and weeds to stop active growth for a few days, and if they’re
sprayed during that time, they won’t take in the herbicides. Also, Arrest MAX
can control taller grasses well, especially if Surefire Crop Oil Plus is added
to the Arrest MAX spray tank. An exception occurs if you’ll be spraying Arrest
MAX and Slay together in a spray tank and grasses are tall enough they might
physically block the spray solution from reaching the broadleaf weeds you’re
trying to control with Slay. In that case, mow the grasses to a height just
higher than the weeds, and wait until you see the grass actively increasing in
height again (usually about a week) before spraying.
How long will it take for
Arrest MAX and Slay to work? Generally, the sprayed weeds should start to
slow growth right away, and you should start to see evidence of weed death
within a few weeks. Again, though, that’s generally. Lots of variables can
affect how long it takes Arrest MAX and Slay to work in certain situations. A
big example is whether the treated weeds were actively growing when sprayed.
Another is whether or not the mixing instructions for the herbicide were
followed. Slay, for example, can’t work if the user fails to add an adjuvant
such as Surefire Crop Oil Plus into the Slay spray tank. One sign that Arrest
MAX is working is that grasses being affected by it often turn a deep
reddish-purple color.
When should I use Surefire Crop Oil Plus? The only time adding an
adjuvant such as Surefire to the spray tank is required is if you’ll be
spraying Slay. Adding an adjuvant to the Slay spray tank is required for Slay
to work. Surefire can also help Arrest MAX control tougher perennial or mature
grasses even better. Surefire can also boost the performance of other
herbicides, such as glyphosate.
Can I find simplified instructions for mixing the Arrest MAX and
Slay spray solutions online? Yes. Go to whitetailinstitute.com, click on the
products tab in the header. Then, scroll down, and click on herbicides, and
then click on either Arrest MAX or Slay. You’ll find a link to recommended
herbicide mix rates in the middle of the page. As mentioned, Arrest MAX and
Slay are highly effective weed-control tools that, like any tool, must be used
correctly to do the job for which they are designed. The herbicide labels are
your source for comprehensive information about the selection and use of
Arrest MAX and Slay, so read and understand them. If you have questions about
Arrest MAX or Slay, call the Whitetail Institute before you spray.
