# Check herbicide restrictions for dry beans, preharvest barley and sugarcane URL: https://leafwrit.com/us/crop-specific-herbicide-checks/ Reviewed: 2026-10-29 ## Bean herbicides: crop type, weeds and label checks Identify the bean type and weeds before comparing herbicides for beans. Start with [UC IPM’s dry-bean weed management guide](https://ipm.ucanr.edu/agriculture/dry-beans/integrated-weed-management/) for California dry beans, then match the exact product and crop-use directions. Check the separate herbicide-timing column for the bean type being grown. ### Name the bean precisely Program design depends on bean variety, weed species, crop rotation, soil type and irrigation system. ### Find the weeds before choosing a treatment Young dry beans compete poorly with early emerging weeds. Integrate cultural, mechanical and chemical techniques and prevent existing weeds from producing new seed. Winter-planted beans such as garbanzos can have mustard weeds and volunteer cereals that need management. Do not copy a summer weed list into that field’s plan. ### Find the exact registered bean product Use [EPA’s ingredient and label search route](https://www.epa.gov/ingredients-used-pesticide-products/how-search-information-about-pesticide-ingredients-and-labels) to locate product information. APPRIL product records include status, registered sites and target pests. ### Options by bean class and timing California dry-bean options include preplant incorporation of ethalfluralin, pendimethalin, s-metolachlor and trifluralin across the four bean classes. For preplant incorporation, metribuzin is listed for garbanzos and EPTC for common beans. After crop and weed emergence, clethodim and sethoxydim appear for all four classes; bentazon appears for common beans and limas. Match the exact registration, California use and crop class before selecting an application. Postemergence options include hooded carfentrazone in row middles and directed halosulfuron. Check whether the use is hooded or directed, because the crop must stay shielded from the spray. ### Describe the weed population before selecting an active ingredient Separate annual broadleaves, annual grasses, perennial seedlings and established perennials in the weed assessment. Read susceptibility ratings as control, partial control, no control or no information, and keep partial-control limits in mind when making a shortlist. ### Give annual morningglory its own management question Control annual morningglory before it twines around bean stems, when treatment without crop injury becomes difficult. Its foliage can engulf the canopy and prevent windrowing and harvest. ### Recognize that nightshade is also a harvested-quality problem Nightshade berries can rupture during threshing, releasing sticky, pigmented juice that stains bean seed. Check for berries and possible harvest contamination alongside weed competition, and prevent additional seed production. Nightshade berries are toxic and can cause rejection of contaminated canning beans, so inspect seed supplies and avoid planting contaminated seed. ### Assess established perennials before committing the field Assess field bindweed and nutsedges before committing a field to dry beans. Choose rotations for the summer, winter or perennial weed problems present. Avoid growing beans in fields heavily infested with field bindweed: California has no herbicides registered for postemergence bindweed control in beans, and preemergence products give only temporary suppression. Bindweed control is an ongoing program that starts before bean planting. ### Scout the preceding crop and retain infestation maps Check weeds before harvesting the preceding crop, about four weeks after planting beans, and just before bean harvest. Record dominant species and infestation severity for each field. Include bermudagrass, johnsongrass and nutsedge patches, together with annual morningglory, nightshade and groundcherry. Winter-planted garbanzos also need assessment for shepherd's-purse, London rocket and volunteer cereals. For organic dry beans, start with a field largely free of weeds because in-crop options are generally cultivation and hand weeding. Vine-type cultivars can shade the ground and suppress weed germination. Choose the canopy habit alongside the irrigation and row arrangement. ### Connect irrigation, cultivation and herbicide timing Plan preirrigation, shallow cultivation and planting together. Include soil texture, moisture and organic matter when choosing the herbicide and timing. If a week or more passes between bed preparation and planting, weed seedlings may begin to emerge, increasing competition and hurting stand development. A ground-driven rolling cultivator must be set to the correct depth for thorough soil mixing and pulled at the proper speed. ## Preharvest herbicides on barley: label and harvest-timing checks Before any preharvest glyphosate use on barley, identify the exact product and whether the crop is for feed, malt or seed. Malting and brewing members of the American Malting Barley Association (AMBA) will not knowingly buy malting barley treated with herbicide after heading. ### Identify the crop and the actual container Cornerstone Plus preharvest directions cover wheat and **feed barley only**. Match the container to those directions before considering glyphosate use. ### Feed barley: growth stage and moisture For feed barley, apply after the hard-dough stage and when the grain contains 20 percent moisture or less. Check the harvest interval and application restrictions on the same label. Do not treat wheat or barley grown for seed under these preharvest directions. ### Settle the buyer question before spraying The buyers’ position applies to herbicide applied after heading as a harvest aid, for desiccation or for any other reason. Keep the buyer’s written answer with the field plan. ### Ask precise questions about malt quality Post-heading herbicide raises concerns about residues and germination, and residue testing is performed. Ask the buyer which acceptance specifications and sampling procedures govern the contract. ## Herbicides used in sugarcane farming: fallow-field options and cost comparison Separate fallow fields from standing sugarcane before comparing herbicides. The LSU AgCenter [2026 fallow weed-control planning guide](https://www.lsuagcenter.com/~/media/system/f/c/b/6/fcb6fc8ada97247c4fe012eac5f05031/2026%20sugarcane%20fallow%20weed%20control%20program%20cost%20modelpdf.pdf) concerns the interval after the old stubble crop is removed and before the next planting. ### Herbicides listed for sugarcane fallow These products are listed for grasses and broadleaf weeds in sugarcane fields during fallow periods: 2,4-D amine, AAtrex and Atrazine, Aim, Classic, clethodim, Direx and Karmex, Envoke, glyphosate, paraquat, metribuzin, pendimethalin, Permit, Prowl H2O, S-Metolachlor, Valor SX and WeedMaster/Brash. Rates are given per product, for example glyphosate 4L at 1.0–2.0 quarts per acre and atrazine 4L at 1.0–2.0 quarts per acre. ### Name the production stage Sugarcane is a perennial crop. Planting, succeeding harvests and fallow form a multi-year cycle. Identify the field's production stage before choosing treatment. Use the fallow planning table for the period before the next planting. ### Compare field operations and costs Compare tillage and herbicide operations using variable costs for fuel, labor and herbicide. Use the same structure to compare each fallow plan on cost. ### Enter cost assumptions in clearly labeled units Update herbicide prices and keep price units consistent with rate units. Use a dated supplier quotation for the purchase decision and keep the original model assumptions separately. ### Check the economic worksheet against its documentation Note the model edition and keep its user guide, which explains the worksheet’s operation, machinery, rate and cost columns. Enter operation date, implement and tractor size, field speed and times over; the model calculates estimated fuel and labor costs from those entries. ### Fallow operations and tank-mix rows In the Louisiana fallow model, operation choices include bed-up, boom spraying, bottom plowing, chisel plowing, disking and use of a hipper. Enter each pass with its actual implement width, tractor horsepower and travel speed, and review access and weed objectives before choosing a machinery sequence. For a tank mix in that worksheet, enter tractor and implement information on the first herbicide row. Enter the second herbicide on the following row without duplicating tractor data. Use the same date for the shared application. This prevents the comparison from charging the same machinery pass twice. Compare the calculated herbicide material cost with the quotation units before accepting the estimate. ## Next step Identify the crop class, market destination and production stage, then [read the exact product label](/us/read-pesticide-label/) before scheduling treatment.