Learn about these pesticide replacements and all their benefits.
By Haley Bilokraly
Farms.com Intern
With increasing government regulations and rising costs of pesticides, what is the future of plant protection on your farm?
As explained by Brady Code, Technical Lead at Syngenta, the answer may be biologicals.
Biologicals are products developed from living organisms that farmers use to increase the health of their crops and protect their fields.
During his presentation at the 2022 Farms.com Western Precision Agriculture Conference & Ag Technology Showcase in November, Brady Code detailed the three types of biologicals: biocontrols, biostimulants, and biofertility. Code also added how biologicals are a growing industry within North America.
As a response to this growth, Syngenta has purchased and partnered with other companies to develop their own biological products. Code provided an overview of the different products Syngenta has already had success with, such as a biostimulant, Megafol, and biofertility product, Envita.
Megafol is used to recover a plant from harsh weather conditions such as heat, cold, flooding, and hail. Farmers have seen favourable results from their usage of Megafold, including one farmer who recovered 3.2 bushels of canola per acre after a hailstorm by using Megafold.
Although the results from Megafol are promising, it's hard to predict when extreme conditions will affect your crop. This is where Syngenta's biofertility product, Envita, takes over. Envita is a product that increases the health of your crop because it creates nitrogen.
Code cautioned the audience that this product is only to be used as a supplement to current nitrogen products being used and should not become a replacement.
To learn more about biologicals and key Syngenta products, watch Brady Code’s full presentation below.