Earlier this year, Australia was the first country in the world to approve registration for Efficon®, an innovative insecticide from BASF.
Greg Teske, Agronomist, based at Elders Gatton
Efficon is powered by an active ingredient which BASF has branded Axalion® and which introduces a new mode of action group – Group 36 – to pest control.
BASF trial work has identified Efficon as exceptionally effective in controlling whiteflies, but for Greg Teske and the rest of the team at Elders Gatton, the new product’s rapid control of aphids promises even greater benefits.
“We had some aphid pressure show up from March right through until May. Particularly in the crops that aren’t treated with Imidacloprid and Durivo,” Greg said.
“We have found Efficon to be a brilliant product. It has very fast knockdown, good residual and most times we’ve only had to apply back-to-back applications to achieve a very good result.”
Another key advantage of Efficon is its excellent fit with IPM programs and very low impact on beneficial insects and pollinators.
“Efficon is a really valuable addition to the crop protection rotation for cotton and vegetable growers,” said BASF Horticulture Portfolio Manager Serge Usatov.
Efficon® by BASF
“It is effective at multiple stages of the target pests’ life cycles, so it can quickly shut down heavy whitefly infestations more effectively than the previous industry standards.
“In other vegetable crops, it’s a great product to alternate with Versys®, which is our other aphid specialist. Growers can use Versys earlier in the season to establish the best possible control, then use the systemic activity of Efficon to protect the bigger plants when getting thorough spray coverage is more difficult.”
Efficon’s world-leading first Australian registrations are to control both silverleaf whiteflies and greenhouse whiteflies in cotton, cucurbit and fruiting vegetable crops; green peach aphids and cabbage aphids in brassica and leafy vegetable crops; and cotton (or melon) aphids in cotton and cucurbit crops.
For Greg Teske, this new chemistry has been a welcome addition to BASF’s product offering for the control of aphids.
“Overall, we are very happy with Efficon and its mode of action, plus the fact it’s soft on beneficials. It gets the thumbs up from us,” he said.
Article written by Elders supplier BASF for Seasons magazine.