Corn and soybean growers know this all too well—if you lose the battle to broadleaf weeds early, you’re giving up yield and profit before the crop even has a chance. The good news? There are powerful herbicide tools available to help you stay ahead of those fast-moving, yield-robbing invaders.
“Problematic weeds for Indiana and Michigan—from my conversations with folks—would be water hemp and giant ragweed,” according to That’s Matt Geiger, Agronomic Service Representative with Syngenta. For soybeans, he recommends Tendovo, which is a preemergence herbicide to battle broadleaf weeds.
“The beauty of it is that Tendovo is also easy on the soybeans,” he says. “We all know if you want the highest yielding soybeans, you want to plant them early. So, if you spray this on early-planted soybeans, you shouldn’t see the crop injury from it, and that preserves yield.
“Also, if you have broad spectrum weed control, that means your crop is not competing with weeds early season,” he says. Even a few weed escapes from a few species can cause a yield hit. So, with Tendovo herbicide, it’s easy on the beans, and broad spectrum weed control should keep you clean up until you make that post-emergence application.”
For corn, he recommends Storen herbicide.
“The quick thing to remember about Storen herbicide was 90% of the time, you’re getting 95% or better weed control versus other products in the industry—which is around 50% to two-thirds of the time, you were getting over 95% weed control. So, Storen provides a far greater level of consistency. When you come in and make that post application, you’re basically just layering that residual and giving yourself the highest chance of clean fields at the end of the season.”
As growers head into the planting season, the message from agronomists is clear: early, effective weed control remains one of the most critical—and controllable—factors in protecting yield potential. With persistent threats like waterhemp and giant ragweed continuing to challenge fields across the Midwest, the strategic use of preemergence and post-emergence herbicides can help farmers stay ahead of competition, preserve crop health, and ultimately safeguard profitability in an increasingly tight-margin environment.
Learn more about Syngenta’s full list of herbicides and other crop protection products at syngenta-us.com.
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