David Owens, Extension Entomologist, owensd@udel.edu
Congratulations to Jacob Urian and to all others who correctly identified the weed from last week as henbit.
This from Mark VanGessel:
Henbit (Lamium amplexicaule) is a winter annual weed in the mint family and has square stems. It emerges in late summer and throughout the fall and into early spring. It is one of the first plants to flower in the spring (early March) and has distinctive purple flowers. A survey of over 60 small grain fields, found it in 56 of the fields. While it is a low growing plant, it can be found at significant densities to reduce small grain yields. It is also a challenge to fall establishment of pastures and hayfields.
Our research has shown control in small grains is best achieved with postemergence herbicides in late October through November. Cereal rye cover crops are effective at suppressing the growth of henbit.
