Fluopiram nematicide shows solid results in controlling different species of key nematodes in soybean crops. The product also stands out for requiring a low dosage and having a toxicological profile favorable to the environment.
The management of nematodes in large-scale crops in Brazil is a challenge that gains more importance every year, due to the increase in problems caused by such pathogens. According to information from the Brazilian Society of Nematology, the damage caused by nematodes can reach an alarming R$35 billion per year and, in soybean crops alone, the damage can reach R$16 million. Currently, the main species that occur in the country, causing significant economic losses in soybean cultivation, are root-knot nematodes, Meloidogyne javanica e M. unexplained, the lesion nematode, Pratylenchus brachyurus, the soybean cyst nematode, Heterodera glycines, and the reniform nematode, Rotylenchulus reniformis, causing a significant drop in production in the places where they occur. The main options for managing nematodes in soybeans are the use of resistant cultivars, crop rotation with non-host plants, in addition to the use of chemical and biological products.
The development of new agricultural pesticides such as nematicides faces a series of challenges, as in addition to providing good levels of control for the target organism, it is important to be selective to beneficial organisms present in the soil, meeting government and society requirements, which They demand products that are environmentally safer, with less persistence and that do not leave residues on the crops in which they are applied. In this context, innovative molecules such as Fluopiram (Verango Prime) emerge as an excellent alternative in the management of nematodes, providing farmers with a highly efficient, broad-spectrum chemical nematode control option, with low dosage use and a toxicological profile very favorable to the environment and operators, contributing to greater productivity and profitability of the crop.
The nematicide Fluopiram is a new molecule in Brazil, belonging to the chemical group of benzamide pyramids, which acts as an inhibitor of mitochondrial respiration in nematodes, leading to a rapid and severe drop in the nematode's cellular energy. The first symptoms can be seen after 30 minutes of contact and complete stoppage occurs one hour to two hours after the nematode comes into contact with the product. In Brazil, Fluopiram will be sold under the commercial name Verango Prime 500 SC and, to date, it is registered with the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply (Mapa) for the control of root-knot nematodes and lesion nematodes in potato crops, coffee, sugar cane and soy.
The product acts through ingestion and contact and acts mainly in the juvenile phases of the second stage through direct contact. Furthermore, it offers control for a diverse range of nematode species, as observed in field trials and in tests carried out under laboratory conditions. Its systemic behavior allows application in the planting furrow, a practice that has been growing in recent years with the aim of better nematode control due to greater control efficiency and root protection. Over the past few years, several studies have been carried out in laboratory, greenhouse and field conditions to evaluate the efficacy and safety of Verango Prime in Brazil.
Since 2013, trials have been conducted in Brazil under greenhouse and field conditions to verify the effectiveness of Verango Prime in controlling nematodes in soybeans and other crops. Since then, Verango Prime has proven to be a highly efficient product for reducing the population of nematodes in soybeans, with performance far superior to the standard market products used.
The results in the control of root-knot nematodes, M. unexplained e M. javanica, important species for soybeans in Brazil and known to be difficult to control, due to the large number of eggs generated in each generation of nematodes, are surprising. Soybean plants inoculated with these nematode species and treated with Verango Prime showed extremely low nematode populations, very close to zero, in evaluations carried out after 40 days and 75 days after nematode inoculation (Table 1). This prolonged effect is essential for the establishment and development of plants in the field, protecting their productive potential.
In addition to root-knot nematodes, Verango Prime proved to be very efficient in greenhouse conditions to control Pratylenchus brachyurus, another species that is difficult to control in the conditions of the Brazilian Cerrado. In Table 1, we can see the high efficiency of Verango Prime in reducing the nematode reproduction factor of lesions at 40 days and 75 days after nematode inoculation, reaching almost 100% on both dates. Even for Heterodera glycines, a nematode little affected by the application of nematicides, due to the presence of cysts, resistance structures of the nematode that remain viable for up to eight years in the soil, the population reduction provided by Verango Prime is notable in a greenhouse.
In addition to reducing the population of nematodes in soybeans, Verango Prime provides better development of the root system when compared to the control (Figure 1 A, B) and better vegetative vigor, greater health and absence of phytotoxicity in treated plants (Figure 1 C, D), even in greenhouse conditions and in the presence of nematodes.
In the 2019/20 harvest, after the product was approved by government agencies, some trials were conducted in commercial soybean areas, following a rigorous evaluation protocol. To elucidate the main findings, we will focus on one of these commercial areas, detailing the methodology and results found.
With the objective of evaluating the effectiveness and agronomic applicability of the application of Verango Prime in the planting furrow in the field, an experiment was carried out in the region of São Gabriel do Oeste, Mato Grosso do Sul, comparing its performance with the producer's management. The experiment was installed in an area of 130 hectares with the M6410IPRO soybean variety, under high nematode infestation, from November 8 to 10, 2019. The treatments used were the farm standard (Trichoderma harzianum 20g/ha and Paecilomyces lilacinus 50g/ha) and Verango Prime at a dose of 0,3L/ha, with three repetitions each, compared to a control strip without nematicide application.
Phytotoxicity assessments were carried out at seven days after emergence (DAE), plant stand and height at 60 DAE and productivity. All these evaluations, as well as the analyzes of the nematode population in soil and roots, were carried out in 31 points (plots) in total, and, for soil analysis, each point was represented by nine subsamples, before the installation of the experiment and at 60 DAE. At the end of the experiment, productivity analysis was carried out by harvesting 3m2 of each plot (point).
Satellite images of the area were previously analyzed with an algorithm dedicated to finding soybean areas with possible incidences of nematodes (Drop Agriculture). By using images from previous soybean harvests, the algorithm indicates areas of highest and lowest risk of nematodes (Figure 2). Soil analyzes confirmed the presence of species from the genera Pratylenchus spp., Meloidogyne spp., Heterodera spp. And Helicotylenchus spp.
No symptoms of phytotoxicity were observed at 7 DAE for any of the treatments. It was possible to observe a more voluminous root system and, consequently, larger and more vigorous seedlings in the treatment with Verango Prime. At 60 DAE, it was possible to observe that the average number of plants per hectare was higher for both treatments in relation to the control. Regarding plant height, an average height of 0,54m was observed for control plants, 0,58m for the standard farm treatment and 0,62m for the Verango Prime treatment (Table 2). In Figure 3, it is possible to visualize the greater rooting and development of plants treated with Verango Prime compared to the farm standard at 60 DAE. In the productivity assessment, the superiority of both treatments in relation to the control was clear, with emphasis on Verango Prime, whose average productivity (83,23 bags/ha) was more than ten bags in relation to the farm standard.
In general, Verango Prime proved to be a very efficient tool in controlling different species of key nematodes in soybean crops, offering effective control at a low dose per hectare, in addition to having a favorable toxicological profile for operators and the environment. As a result, the product not only protects the productive potential of soybean varieties, but also contributes to more sustainable and profitable agricultural management for the producer and society.
Andressa Machado, Paraná Rural Development Institute; Daniela Okuma, Felipe Sulzbach, Renato Carvalho, Bayer Crop Science
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