Published on 08/12/2020
Amishield 500WG is a contact and protectant fungicide for use as a seedling tray drench applied immediately prior to transplanting. It has been extensively trialled in NZ, and offers the industry an alternative treatment system to commonly used clubroot fungicide programmes.
Alan Cliffe, development manager for Nufarm, says instead of having to rely solely on broadcasting or strip treating in the field with other preventative compounds, as is the case at present, Amishield means growers can plant seedlings that are already protected from clubroot.
In soils where the disease is already present, Amishield as a seedling tray drench won’t prevent potential subsequent infection of seedling roots as they extend beyond the treated plug area. Nor will it eliminate the potential need for additional control measures under severe disease pressure, especially for crops that require two to three months or more to reach maturity. But the protection given by Amishield as a seedling tray drench generally improves crop yield. And when it comes to the most serious disease of NZ’s brassica growing areas, which not only reduces marketable yield but sometimes totally destroys crops, this is a key benefit, he says.
“As a good example, in some Nufarm trials in support of the ACVM approval application, Amishield treated plants still had a relatively high clubroot score at harvest. However, they also showed a significant yield response compared to both the untreated control, and a standard pre-plant incorporated fungicide. This is due to the improvement in root development, especially of the root hairs, within the treated zone when the plants are establishing.”
In addition to strong preventative activity, the active ingredient in Amishield (amisulbrom), inhibits secondary infection and has excellent crop safety. It works by killing the motilezoospores of the clubroot fungus, which infect the root hairs of brassica plants.
Amishield is the first formulation containing amisulbrom to be released to the NZ market, and Alan Cliffe says that means it also provides an alternative mode of action (MOA) for clubroot resistance management. Amishield belongs to FRAC Group 21 (Qil fungicides).
It comes in a water dispersable granule (WDG) formulation that is easy to mix and measure, and has an efficient low dose rate of 20 g/1000 plants, making it ideal for nurseries. It is also a flexible mixing partner, in that it may be applied in a seedling tray drench mixture with thiamethoxam and chlorantraniliprole insecticides.
Amishield 500WG has little systemic activity, and little soil movement, and poses low risk to earthworms, birds and pollinators.
It is available in a convenient 3.5 kg container.
For more detail contact your local Nufarm territory manager.