FOX TAIL IN THE FIELD

Does anyone know of a good way to get rid of FOX TAIL in a field, without killing everything else. I can't find a herbicide for it so if anyone knows of one, or another way of killing it off please let me know. Thanks.

There are herbicides available that will selectively control foxtail and not injure the crop to which they are applied. Ask your at chemical dealer which will work with your crop.

Ben

Thanks Ben, I just looked on line and couldn't find anything but I will call Helena Chemical to see what they have, glad to know there is something to get rid of it. .........Phil

What crop are you trying to take it out of? Your choices will be limited by the crop and whether or not you're a certified applicator.

There is no crop, it is just a pasture. I sprayed for star thistle last fall and this spring, and it really killed it off, but now we have a lot of fox tail. I'm pretty sure if I could spray the thistle, the Ag dept should give me a permit to get the stuff to kill the fox tail, but I will know when I call the chemical co. ........Phil

If I understand right you are in a pasture (grasses only?) situation, and that is difficult to kill off a grass in a grass crop.

Mowing it before it goes to seed is important.

Seeding in good grasses and getting them to grow well is important to crowd out the foxtail in the future.

In soybeans or broadleaf crops it is -very- simple to use Select or other herbicides to kill. But those chemicals will also kill a grass so no good to you.

In corn it is common to have roundup ready corn and roundup will get rid of foxtail, but of course doesn?t work in a pasture grass.

There are a very few specialized herbicides that work in wheat and perhaps other grasses that will knock down the foxtail a bit I think, but I?m not familiar with those, being in a corn/ soybean area? So I?m talking out of my neither region on this....

Controlling weeds in a crop is all about figuring out the broadleaf and grass relationships and finding a herbicide that kills one without the other.

In your case, foxtail isn?t really so bad, it is just a grass and makes feed. If you are trying to sell something of it then your customers might not like the ?weeds? but otherwise, just graze it or more it properly and work on making your grass grow better so there is less room for the weeds. Lime, fertility, etc.

Paul

Thanks Paul, I know, the cows will eat it if they have to, but it is not good for them, and the fox tail is just getting out of hand. I can try and plant some other grasses in the field, but I just don't know if that will crowd the fox tail out. I'm going to call the chemical people to see what they suggest and talk to the Ag dept. to see if they can help. It really made a big difference when I killed off the star thistle, so maybe there is something for this darn fox tail, other than bringing in a bunch of goats. Then the cows next. Some day, I would like to get the field to where I can plant triticale then graze it down, take the cows out, mow it, bale it for the winter or sell it. Something to think about, oh well.....Phil

There is no herbicide that will selectively control foxtail. Although for cattle, not sure why you're worried about it. Cattle will eat it just fine throughout the year.
https://extension.oregonstate.edu/pests-diseases/weeds/foxtail-control-pastures-hayground

Yes, I just called Helena Chemical and they said about the same thing. I can kill the fox tail but every thing else around it will go too. They did give me a good way to work the soil and kill the fox tail, then plant some other crop like beardless wheat. The cows will eat the fox tail but only if it is just coming up and can just be identified. Other wise they will just eat around it, and now you have the same problem but more of it. I did save the link you sent me, and it is very similar to what the people at Helena said, thanks. .....Phil

Maybe I keep my cows hungrier, they never eat around foxtail.

Maybe you do!

I wouldn't worry about it. My cows would graze it but it alone made horrible round bale hay and they didn't prefer it. When planting a summer hay crop I just do the soil prep and plant. It comes back with the desired crop but is little competition.

I think that is the best, since it is a grass, a good planted field should be able to crowd out a lot of it. thanks...Phil

I have seen it cut and baled for hay. One guy said he got four cuttings a year.

I don't mean to be a wise-guy flower hugger here, but have you taken a complete soil test? Foxtail likes high magnesium, low calcium, low phosphorous soil. (So do most annual grasses, for that matter.) If you haven't already, you might talk to an agronomist. Might seem like a bunch of pollywackle, but we know crops grow well in certain conditions. Every plant has its preference, including weeds. We have a field that's become rife with annual grasses, we took a complete soil test this spring, and wad'ya know? It's low in phosphorous, sulfur, calcium, its pH is low, and it's high in magnesium. Surprise surprise. Changing the soil so the weed's not so happy will make it less competitive.