More Plusses for Monsanto's Performance PlusMore Plusses for Monsanto's Performance Plus

The first plus growers are going to pay attention to in Monsanto's 2011 Cotton Performance Plus Program is the cash: the maximum rebate increases from $12.50 to $20.

The focus for Monsanto, however, is on the added management element. The company put expanded the program to soybeans, enhanced the corn program and added recommendations on herbicides and timing for all three crops. In corn and soybeans, the program is called Roundup Ready Plus.

"This is the new part: what are you asking me to do and how do I do it?" Monsanto's Global Weed Manager Randy Barker said. The focus of the program, he said, is "How can we get effective weed control at the most economic cost?"

Growers in 13 cotton states can participate in sections of the program or adopt the entire package, Barker says. Eligible states are: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia.

To participate, growers must first plant cotton varieties containing Genuity Roundup Ready Flex technology, then buy qualifying herbicides from an authorized Monsanto retailer between Jan. 3 and Aug. 21, apply the herbicides at the recommended rates, and finally file a completed program refund form along with the herbicide invoices.

The program herbicides and refund rates are:

Barker outlines the mechanics of the program in the video on this page.