Field, greenhouse, and laboratory studies on the efficacy and action of the herbicides SC-0051 and SC-0774

SC-0051 and SC-0774 are two experimental herbicides of undisclosed chemistry. A three year field study was conducted to evaluate SC-0051 and SC-0774 for weed control in conventional and no-till corn in Virginia. SC-0051 applied preemergence or postemergence, controlled common lambs-quarters (Chenopodium album L.), common ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia L.) horseweed (Conyza canadensis (L.) Cronq.), common chickweed (Stellaria media (L.) Vill. and was safe to corn. SC-0051 did not control smooth pigweed (Amaranthus hybridus L.) or giant foxtail (Setaria faberi Herrm.). SC-0774 effectively controlled the rye (Secale cereale) cover crop and large crabgrass (Digitaria sanguinalis (L. Scop.) but did not control broadleaf weeds or giant foxtail. SC-0774 also caused considerable but temporary corn injury when applied at rates above 1.1 kg/ha. Combinations of SC-0051 and atrazine provided broad spectrum weed control and yields comparable to atrazine plus metolachlor. Field and laboratory studies were conducted to evaluate the effect of soil pH on the soil mobility of SC-0051 and SC-0774 in sandy loam soils. SC-0774 was applied to soils amended to high and low pH and samples were collected by depth throughout the growing season. A method was developed for extracting and quantifying SC-0774 from collected soil samples. Large crabgrass was also used as a bioindicator species for qualitative detection of SC-0774 residues. These studies showed that SC-0774 was significantly more mobile in high pH soil than in low pH soil. Also, the decreased mobility of SC-0774 at low soil pH lead to decreased corn injury but it increased the soil residual activity of this herbicide. Soil column studies with SC-0774 and SC-0051 showed that the soil mobility of both herbicides increased with increasing soil pH. These herbicides cause reductions in chlorophyll and carotenoid levels in susceptible species resulting in a bleached appearance. The mechanism of this bleaching action is not known. Studies were conducted which examined the effect of SC-0051 on the pigment content and quantity in the susceptible species soybean. High performance liquid chromatography was used to separate, quantify, and identify pigments present in extracts of bleached tissues. The bleaching herbicide norflurazon was also examined for comparison purposes. SC-0051 and norflurazon inhibited the biosynthesis of carotenoids while causing an accumulation of the carotene precursor phytoene and an additional, unidentified pigment that appears to be structurally related to phytoene. This indicates that SC-0051, like norflurazon, inhibits carotenoid formation by blocking the desaturation of phytoene to phytofluene. The uptake and translocation of ¹⁴C-SC-0051 into tolerant corn and susceptible soybean seedlings was examined under growth chamber conditions to investigate the basis for the selectivity of this herbicide. Herbicide uptake was similar in both species but the susceptible soybean translocated a higher percentage of the ¹⁴C-SC-0051 to the growing point of new tissues than did the tolerant corn. It is proposed that differential translocation plays a role in the crop selectivity of the herbicide SC-0051.