THE Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority (APVMA) has registered Mateno Complete as a grass and broadleaf weed pre-emergent and early post-emergent (EPE) herbicide in time for the upcoming winter-cropping season.

Developed and manufactured by Bayer, it is registered for use in wheat and barley crops, and introduces a new herbicide mode of action for Australia, aclonifen (Group 32), in a co-formulation with pyroxasulfone (Group 15) and diflufenican (Group 12) herbicides.

Aclonifen and diflufenican are taken up predominantly by plant shoots and leaves and are particularly effective when supporting pyroxasulfone, predominantly taken up by plant roots, at the EPE stage.

Bayer states the three active ingredients in Mateno Complete work optimally together to deliver much higher activity than the individual components alone.

At the EPE timing, the new herbicide can be used in wheat to provide weed control across the complete soil surface, including in the furrow, on the furrow shoulder and in the inter-row.

It can also be incorporated by sowing (IBS) in both wheat and barley to control grass weeds.

When used IBS in wheat and barley, Mateno Complete offers a high level of control of annual ryegrass, barley grass, annual phalaris, silver grass and toad rush, and suppression of wild oats, great brome and capeweed.

Used EPE in wheat, it provides control of small silver grass, toad rush, wild radish, capeweed and prickly lettuce, and suppression of annual ryegrass, barley grass and doublegee/spiny emex.

“The Australian development of Mateno Complete commenced back in 2014 and arrived at the co-formulation of three active ingredients we see today due to their performance under Australian conditions on our key weeds,” Bayer head of market development Rick Horbury said.

“It was a satisfying milestone in 2021 to see Mateno Complete perform just as well in the 100 grower-applied sites as it had in around 500 small plot trials conducted prior to its registration.

“This gives us great confidence that it will continue to perform for growers in the 2022 season and beyond.’’

Bayer broadacre marketing lead Tim Wilkie said the extensive crop trials, which had investigated a range of aspects from use with different machinery systems through to efficacy and crop safety, demonstrated Mateno Complete would effectively extend the window for early weed control.

Mr Wilkie said the herbicide provided improvements in weed control when compared with existing standards, and EPE applications following an effective pre-emergent herbicide showed particular strength and length of control compared with many alternate herbicides.

“Compatibility investigations also highlighted successful results in mixtures with a range of products.

“In trials where Mateno Complete was applied with bromoxynil-based herbicide, Buctril, which is becoming available to growers again from March, it showed enhanced control of hard-to-kill broadleaf weeds.”

Suitable for disc seeders

Mr Wilkie said Mateno Complete also can be used with disc seeders in wheat, which are increasingly becoming adopted.’

He said the inclusion of aclonifen was a key benefit and would align with the industry’s strategy to use multiple herbicide modes of action to help growers delay the evolution of herbicide-resistant annual ryegrass.

“With metabolic resistance in annual ryegrass a major concern for the industry, the EPE use pattern of Mateno Complete provides the dual benefits of increased weed control with the use of multiple herbicide modes of action within a season,’’ Tim said.

He said the excellent control of other grassweeds as well as broadleaf weeds from the EPE application also could help preserve important broadleaf herbicide tools for use in rotation or elsewhere within weed management programs.

According to the APVMA residues assessment on Mateno Complete, the formulation represents an increase in rates when compared to the currently approved use patterns for cereals.

The use of pyroxasulfone was previously registered in wheat at the proposed rate as a pre-sowing application only, and Mateno Complete is the first approved use of pyroxasulfone on barley.

APVMA’s Public Release Summary relating to Mateno Complete said aclonifen is currently approved for use in several registered products for weed control in many countries within the European Union.

The product names include Bandur, Challenge, Emerger and Fenix.

In addition, aclonifen is registered for use under product name of Challenge in Algeria, Morocco and Turkey; Prodigo in Chile and Uruguay; and under the name of Valzer in India.

Mateno Complete is now available through Bayer stockists.

Source: APVMA, Bayer