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Wheat Weeds

All Wheat Weeds Content

Two pictures; The left has yellow soybean plants with only brown dirt throughout. The right has yellow soybean plants with greenish weeds throughout.

Weed Management via Harvesting Order

Despite The warm and wet growing season that promoted continuous flushes of weed germination, weeds are usually present at the time of harvest. Careful consideration should be taken to determine the order of fields to be harvested.

A green Palmer amaranth weed surrounded by various other green plants.

Palmer Amaranth Confirmed in Turner County: Is this weed in your fields?

Palmer amaranth has recently been confirmed in Turner County. Currently, the estimation of Palmer amaranth infestations has been confirmed in 18 counties across South Dakota

wheat field

Wheat

The SDSU Extension team provides unbiased, research-based information to help wheat growers make decisions to improve yields and profits.

aerial view of South Dakota farm and surrounding land

Crops

During the growing season, SDSU Extension provides weekly production recommendations.

A green field bindweed with a white flower at top.

In a Bind With Field Bindweed?

It’s August and field bindweed, one of our most-persistent perennial weeds, is flowering. Although field bindweed is not statewide noxious, it’s locally noxious in Bennett, Bon Homme, Clarke, Lake, Stanley, and Yankton counties.

Wheat plants infected with wheat streak mosaic virus.

Volunteer Wheat and Kochia Management With Herbicides Will Likely Require Two Passes

Wheat curl mites, which carry wheat streak mosaic virus, use volunteer wheat and grass weeds as secondary hosts to infest recently planted winter wheat crops. Therefore, effective management of these plants before winter wheat planting is critical.

Combine harvesting wheat.

Weed Management After Wheat Harvest

Most of the winter wheat has been harvested in South Dakota and spring wheat harvest is underway. While the growing season is over for the wheat, post-harvest weed management is important to minimize the amount of weeds that are present in the spring

Green Canada thistle with whitened leaves at the top. Various green plants throughout.

White Thistle Disease: Biological management at work

White thistle disease can be seen among many Canada thistle plants throughout South Dakota this growing season. Plants infected with the disease exhibit significant reductions in both growth and seed head compared with non-infected plants.

A green absinth wormwood plant surrounded by other green vegetation.

Absinth Wormwood Spray Window Passed: Mow now and plan to treat the regrowth in the fall

Absinth wormwood is a statewide noxious weed that inhabits cropland, pasture, rangeland, right-of-ways, and waste sites. If not effectively managed, the species can displace desirable vegetation, reduce crop yield and decrease land value.

Green waterhemp plant next to a black, ink pen. Green soybeans in the background with brown soil in the foreground.

Waterhemp is flowering. No seeds present yet.

Waterhemp is one of the most-difficult weeds to manage in South Dakota row crops. While herbicide resistance is a great factor in the difficulty of managing this weed, the biology of the species plays an important role as well.