The EPA recently approved Bayer CropScience’s new Poncho/Votivo seed treatment for use in corn.

Poncho/Votivo combines corn seed-applied insecticide with a new living-barrier approach to nematode protection. It features a rate of 500 (.500 mg of active ingredient per kernel) of Poncho 600 seed-applied insecticide, providing growers with increased control of wireworms, black cutworms, white grubs and other early season insect pests. The 500 rate produces more plants per acre and higher yields than the industry standard 250 rate (.250 mg of active ingredient per kernel), says Poncho/Votivo corn product manager Kerry Grossweiler.

“We are very pleased to bring this product to market after conducting years of research and hundreds of trials,” Grossweiler says. “We have successfully combined the No. 1 corn seed-applied insecticide with a truly innovative new approach to protect seedlings and roots from nematodes. For growers, that means improved plant vigor, fierce yields and a positive return on investment.”

Poncho/Votivo includes a specific bacteria strain that colonizes corn roots upon germination and creates a biological barrier of protection that nematodes can’t break through. “There are about a dozen nematode species that can cause major problems in corn,” product development manager Jennifer Riggs says. “Poncho/Votivo provides protection against nematode feeding —regardless of the target nematode species.”

According to Bayer, field trials show Poncho/Votivo averages a 6- to 8-bu/acre yield gain over Poncho 250. Large demonstration plots have been planned for the 2010 crop season.

For more information, contact Bayer CropScience, Dept. FIN, 2 T.W. Alexander Dr., Research Triangle Park, NC 27709, 866/992-2937, www.BayerCropScienceUS.com.