Studies were conducted in the field and in containers in Mississippi from 2017-2019 to optimize Italian ryegrass control in corn production. Most fall-applied residual herbicides provided ≥ 90% Italian ryegrass control 56 days after treatment (DAT) in both field and container experiments. Oxyflurofen provided 95% Italian ryegrass control 28 DAT but only 81% control 56 DAT in field plots. S-metolachlor plus atrazine followed by paraquat produced the highest return on investment for both site-years. The timing of removal study indicates the optimum time to remove Italian ryegrass relative to corn planting is approximately three to four weeks prior to planting. In the droplet size study, Italian ryegrass control when S-metolachlor was sprayed with the TTI was lower than when S-metolachlor was sprayed with the AIXR in containers 28 DAT. Italian ryegrass control when paraquat was sprayed with the AIXR was greater than when paraquat was sprayed with the TTI.

Italian ryegrass (Lolium perenne spp. multiflorum) is a common weed management problem in turfgrasses, cereals and non-crop areas in the United States. In Oregon, the number of populations with multiple-resistance continues to increase. To manage these resistant populations, the resistance patterns must be determined. In this study, five Italian ryegrass populations (CT, R1, R2, R3 and R4) from two cropping systems were studied for resistance patterns and mechanisms. The CT population is from a Christmas tree plantation and was resistant to at least six herbicides with four different mechanisms of action: atrazine, diuron (2.4-fold), glyphosate (7.4-fold), hexazinone (3.1-fold), imazapyr (1.8-fold), and sulfometuron. The resistant indices (RI) for sulfometuron and atrazine could not be calculated because 50% growth reduction for the CT population was not reached even with the highest rates applied, 17.6 kg ai ha⁻¹and 16 kg ai ha⁻¹, respectively, which are 16 times the recommended field application rates for this two herbicides. The CT population accumulated less shikimate than the S population. There were two mutations in the CT population, Trp591 to Leu in the ALS gene and Ser264 to Gly in the psbA gene, which explain the ALS and PII cross resistance, respectively. R1, R2, R3 and R4 were collected from annual cropping systems. All four populations were resistant to flufenacet. RIs for two populations, R2 and R4, were 8.4 and 5.9, respectively. R2 and R4 also were resistant to mesosulfuron-methyl, pinoxaden, quizalofop and clethodim. R4 was resistant to diuron, but R2 was not. An Asp-2078-Gly substitution in the ACCase gene was found in both R2 and R4 populations, while another Ile-2041-Asn substitution in the ACCase gene was found in the R4 population. These mutations explain the ACCase cross resistance in the R2 and R4 populations. The mechanisms for the glyphosate resistance in the CT population and the flufenacet resistance in R1, R2, R3 and R4 populations were not identified in this study. None of the five populations were resistant to the herbicide pyroxasulfone. / Graduation date: 2013