Richard Zollinger pointed out research on the NDSU-AGDAKOTA mailing list. Research Scientist Pirkko Laitinen in Finland shows that there is Significant glyphosate herbicide transport to plant roots.
One of the things that makes glyphosate such a useful herbicide is that it breaks down very quickly. Even crops that are glyphosate intolerant can be seeded within a few days of application. If glyphosate residue is lingering, it can severely affect subsequent crop yield.
One of the ways that glyphosate residue can remain in the soil is when plants sprayed with glyphosate take the glyphosate into their roots. The roots then store the glyphosate as the plant dies. The glyphosate does not break down quickly in the roots, so when the roots themselves decompose some time later they release the glyphosate into the soil. This can kill the crop. Tillage practices are key for reducing the risk.
Another point raised in the study is that glyphosate can accumulate in low phosphorous soils by binding with the soil. If the soil phosphorous is too high, the glyphosate does not bind and is therefore at a greater risk of leaching. This is an important point to keep in mind for manured fields as they tend to have high phosphorous.
Glyphosate is still a tremendously useful product. This study just highlights further considerations to bear in mind when spraying a field.
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Bookmarked! I use glyphosate all the time – I’ll have to keep these points in mind.
A lot of these things only pop up one year in ten (if that) but it’s still important to know that they can happen. Hopefully you’re never in a position where this is helpful.
One year in ten? If glyphosate moves into plant roots, that’s an ongoing concern to consider. There’s a lot of misinformation being bandied about, saying glyphosate is this generation’s Agent Orange, etc. This kind of research is much more useful.
One year in ten is a guess that is not based on the research but on similar things I’ve seen with other chemicals.
If I’m reading the research correctly once the roots break down the glyphosate is gone. For annual plants, this would probably be within the first year.
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