100 percent emergence is not inconceivable. A tremendous number of off-target herbicide drift problems on corn have occurred this spring. Corn planted during the warm, dry conditions of early March emerged quickly, and unfortunately, thousands of acres were destroyed by careless burn-down herbicide applications. Corn injury from herbicide application was often documented more than one mile away from the target field. Do not apply any herbicides during conditions conducive to off-target drift.
Extreme caution is required when susceptible crops are downwind.
Increasing acreage of herbicide-tolerant crops may also raise potential for corn injury from herbicide drift during May as well. The banding pattern results from higher leaves being enclosed within the whorl when the drift occurred. This banding pattern is more evident when injury is relatively slight, so little herbicide translocation occurs within a leaf or in new leaves. It takes at least 10 to 14 days for the herbicide to translocate to the growing point, which is underground, and produce injury symptoms in the whorl. Plants with new leaves that are entirely chlorotic and not emerging from the whorl, indicating the growing point is severely stunted, likely will not recover and will require replanting.