Hundreds of grain producers from Western Bulgaria gathered in Pravets for the opening of the global campaign of BASF “Agriculture, the noblest profession on earth” in Bulgaria.
They were welcomed by the Business Manager of BASF Agricultural Solutions for Bulgaria – Krasimira Ivanova and by Gustavo Palerosi Carneiro, Vice President and Manager of BASF for Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
Technologies were presented at the technical meeting sunflower – plant protection and hybrids.
… And one shaped the sunflower the way he wanted with Architect®
„Architect® is the first and only sunflower growth regulator and fungicide. It has the ability to shape plants and make them more resilient to an increasingly changing climate“. With these words, Todor Evtimov, Marketing and Technical Manager at BASF, began the presentation of the innovation in sunflower technology Architect®.
The product has been known to farmers in Bulgaria since 2022, and for two years BASF Bulgaria has been following its qualities and action in our country.
„In 2022, we reported an increase in the volume of the root system by 21%. In 2023, by 25%, which is almost a quarter more volume. Plants treated with Architect®they had more root hairs and morelong roots, as well as a heavier root system. A bigger root system means more–good absorption of water and nutrients. And easier overcoming of severe weather conditions in summer as a result of–the deep root“, explained Todor Evtimov.
The survey also includes the thickness of the stem, which when using Architect® increased by 10% in both test years. A thicker stem increases the resistance of sunflowers to breaking in summer storms because the parenchyma tissue inside these stems becomes much denser and the conducting vessels stronger.
Architect® distributes the energy of the plants thus optimizing their height. In 2022, an average shortening of the stems was reported by 17 cm, and in 2023 by 15 cm. The reduction in plant height comes from the reduced internodal distances.
In the two consecutive years of the test, an increase in the diameter of the sunflower combs by an average of 1 cm was found with Architect®. There are more seeds in them, which are also better filled. The parameters of the pita are the main factor that affects the final performance. As a result of the new structure of the sunflower, yields from those treated with Architect® plots are 21 kg/ha higher in 2022 and 18 kg higher in 2023.
Besides growth regulator Architect® is also a fungicide. The product has the role of supporting the plant’s fight against diseases and building healthy crops in the remaining part of the growing season, thereby reducing production risks.
So that farmers can take advantage of the benefits that Architect gives®, it should be applied when the plants are about 40-50 cm tall, or when the 2nd internode is well developed. Then the plants have grown enough to have biomass to absorb a sufficient part of the preparation and to achieve the desired regulatory effect.
„…it is at this moment that the plants are preparing for their most intense stage of development. Over the next few weeks, they will increase in size by 3 to 5 times. If we manage to enter at this moment with a dose of 120 ml/dkawe will give the plants a great chance to distribute their growth power and for it to go where we have an interest“, said Todor Evtimov.
Pulsar® Plus it is merciless even with ragweed and blue wrist
The Pulsar formulation®Plus it differentiates it from other imazamox containing products. What is different is the complex of co-formulants.
„Some of them helpetc to adhere and retain the working solution on plant leaves. Others play a role in the penetration and movement of the active substance inside the tissues of the weeds. Third stabilize the active substance. Everyone’s role is to provide excellent weed control. However, in standard formulations, i.ethis is not always an easy task because of the characteristics of weeds and their natural barriers create difficultiesMaria Evlogieva, BASF sales representative, listed the benefits.
Pulsar® Plus successfully overcomes the natural barriers of wheat weeds such as moss, hairs and wax coating and copes well with the tilt of the leaves of this type of weeds. The product lingers and adheres to the leaves and this makes it more effective in controlling weeds. This is also proven in experiments at the Agricultural University. In more advanced weed development, treatment with Pulsar® Plus at a dose of 160 ml/ha provides very good control of loboda and some other stubborn weeds. The other two imazamox-containing products used for comparison apparently failed to do so.
Because of the Ambrosia weed, which causes huge problems for producers from the Vidin region, a large number of them choose the Clearfield technology® and Clearfield® Plus. By using Pulsar® Plus, farmers do not allow ragweed to compromise their yields, explained Maria Evlogieva.
The blue wrist parasite has become a scourge for producers in southern Bulgaria, but not only there, because it is already widespread in the regions of Selanovtsi, Oryahovo and Byala Slatina.
„In this case, it is good to choose hybrids that are of suitable genetic tolerance to blue wrist. This is part of good practices for dealing with this weed. A pulsar® Plus is the only chemical solution to control all races of blue wrist in Clearfield® and Clearfield® plus technology“, the sales representative pointed out.
Modern technology cannot do without genetics
„It all starts with the seeds. Everyone believes that the genetics they use will bring them higher yields and higher profits. Each new variety that is registered must show a minimum of 3% difference to the standards in the overall test. That is why we have this progress in terms of yields.“ With these words, Bozhidar Bonev, product manager, began the important topic of hybrids from BASF’s InSun product line.
Bonev pointed out that because of the climate, since 2013 the average yields of sunflowers have remained the same. “That’s why–next we turn to plant adaptation“, he said.
For what will be the characteristics of the sunflower seed as a yield carrier, the density at which the plants are grown is of greatest importance. Here the sunflower needs our help because it has only one seed and cannot compensate for serious deviations in soil moisture and temperatures during the second part of the growing season. It is necessary to make the plants more adapted from the beginning by giving them the correct growing density.
From the two-year trials, it can be seen that the most optimal density is from 5200 to 5800 plants per acre. Of course, even lower densities would work, but only if we can successfully manage weeds in the field. It is clear that the fewer crops there are in a crop, the more weeds there are.
The conservation factor of plant yield potential can be influenced by selecting hybrids that have resistance to blue wrist and blight.
„We put the onus on genetics to handle all the diseases that are present in the field. We are talking about Alternaria, about the rare rust and, above all, about Macrophomina, Sclerotinia, Phoma and Phomopsis. Everyone one a hybrid must possess the necessary tolerance to be able to cope with these diseases. We from BASF Frwe’re buzzing huge attention, when we select our hybrids, how resistant they are to macrophomina, verticillium and sclerotinia. These are diseases that come from the soil, infect plants and it is impossible to control them with chemical means. It becomes more and more important what hybrids we will select because other options are limited“, emphasized Bozhidar Bonev.
He emphasized that regardless of the surprises of the weather, there are sunflower hybrids that are the backbone of a varietal structure. They usually occupy the majority of the area in a sunflower production.
From Clearfield® Plus the hybrids are InSun 222 CLP and Acordis CLP.
Among the tribenuron-methyl tolerant hybrids are Averon and the new InSun 277 SU. They have the necessary blue wrist and mana resistance.
„Where there are races of mana that are not controlled geneticallywe have double insured through chemical protection by treating seeds with the latest active substances currently on the market.“
The performance of InSun 222 CLP is very stable, regardless of crop density. This is an outstanding advantage for deviations in crop density. Between 4,500 and 6,500 plants per acre, the hybrid shows excellent consistency in results. Compared to competing benchmarks using BASF’s trials, this hybrid gave 6% higher yields in 2023.
„In tribenuron-methyl tolerant hybrids nthe ashes representatives have a very strong performance. These are InSun 277 SU and Aviran They are“, pointed out the product manager.
When choosing hybrids it is good to know that the potential is only half of the success. The rest is adaptation. Hybrids from the InSun line® of BASF were created in southern Europe and adapted to the conditions of southern Europe.
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