Production Blog

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (DTN) -- Like an NFL football coach reviewing game film on Monday morning, farmers will soon evaluate what worked well and what didn't this growing season. Many will consider changing their game plans for next year, and for some, that will include addressing issues with developing herbicide resistance. University weed scientists are interested in knowing what farmers think about new options for weed management.

Amit Jhala, Extension weed management specialist at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and his graduate student, Ankit Yadav, are conducting a survey about weed management practices and views on emerging weed-control technologies, including camera-guided, "see-and-spray" sprayers, laser weeders, electric weeders and autonomous machines. They invite farmers, crop consultants and other agricultural professionals to complete the survey, which takes 10 to 12 minutes.

"Your input will help guide future weed science research and Extension programming, making sure our work reflects the real needs, concerns and priorities of the people managing weeds in the field," wrote the scientists when announcing the survey. "Results will also be shared back with the agricultural community and published to benefit the broader industry."

Questions on the survey address difficult-to-control and suspected herbicide-resistant weeds; awareness of and interest in targeted-spraying technologies; perspectives on non-chemical tools such as lasers and electrical weeding; views on herbicides, costs and resistance management; and university research and Extension priorities.

The anonymous survey is open to anyone 19 years of age and who is involved in farm operations, crop scouting or agribusiness decision-making. Questions may be skipped, and participants can stop at any point.

Responses will be collected through Jan. 31, 2027.

Follow this link to complete the survey: https://unlcorexmuw.qualtrics.com/…

Read about electric weeders from the pages of Progressive Farmer here: https://www.dtnpf.com/…

Jason Jenkins can be reached at jason.jenkins@dtn.com

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