The most common response to managing uncontrolled weeds is to make another herbicide application, which can quickly add costs.
Herbicides
- In glyphosate-tolerant (GT) crops, an additional full-rate glyphosate application costs between $3 and $6 per acre, and increasing the rate will increase the cost.
- A residual herbicide or tank mix can cost anywhere from $2 to $20 per acre, depending on the crop and weed spectrum.
- Inconvenience and time spent to identify weed spectrum and weed height in order to choose the best control option.
- A North Carolina State University study found that growers placed a value of $14 to $18.40 per acre on the convenience of herbicide-tolerant crops.
- Inconvenience in changing a program costs growers in management time, loss of simplicity in known herbicides, rates and application timing, and environmental profile.
Application
Machinery and labor costs comprise custom application charges:
- Machinery costs (fuel and oil, maintenance, depreciation, etc.) run from $5 to $7 per acre per trip with a 150-hp diesel tractor.
- Labor and time account for about $1.24 per acre per trip, with variations depending on size and speed of equipment, and whether dealerships scout and spray for customers, which could increase costs even further.
- Tillage, although an effective weed management option for some growers, introduces more hidden costs in machinery and labor to make an additional trip across the field, loss of soil moisture and increase in erosion.
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