The EPA is registering the herbicide Enlist Duo from Dow AgroSciences with first-time-ever restrictions to manage the problem of resistant weeds.

Summer is in full swing. Soybeans are beginning to bloom, corn is tasseling and sunflowers will start to show their flashy yellow flowers soon.

Along with the cool spring and slow start to the growing season, there have been many days with windy conditions. Keep in mind the objectives of any spray application are to balance productivity, efficacy, and prevent off-site movement of pesticides. In some situations, this can be easier said than done. Below are several things to consider to help reduce particle (not necessarily, vapor) spray drift.

Last summer, Fred Whitford from Purdue University and Pat Hipkins from Virginia Tech conducted a presentation on the various aspects of accurately measuring pesticides. In the presentation, the two identified six important steps required to achieve a safe and effective pesticide application.

In 2011, University of Kentucky set up 3 commercial-scale, on-farm fungicide tests in fields of yellow and white corn in West Kentucky.

An agricultural tool as small as a thumb can mean the difference between a 25 to 50 percent increase in yields or a 25 to 50 percent decline, according to an expert from Ohio State University's College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences.

Monsanto Co is hosting a "Bee Summit." Bayer AG is breaking ground on a "Bee Care Center." And Sygenta AG is funding grants for research into the accelerating demise of honeybees in the United States, where the insects pollinate fruits and vegetables that make up roughly a quarter of the American diet.

A study published this week by Washington State University research professor Charles Benbrook finds that the use of herbicides in the production of three genetically modified herbicide-tolerant crops — cotton, soybeans and corn — has actually increased.

In recent years, some no-tillers have criticized strip-till, pointing to instances of severe soil erosion in fields that were strip-tilled up and down hills. But more than 25 years ago, a study by three agricultural engineers at the University of Illinois showed that strip-tilling on the contour effectively minimized soil erosion and limited losses of herbicides and insecticides.