What to Choose: Euro Lang or Euro Lend?

Comparison of herbicides Euro Lang and Euro Lend from Nertus (Hungary)

Currently, for effective weed control in plantings of specialized hybrid sunflower varieties, producers increasingly use post-emergence (so-called insurance) broad-spectrum herbicides, i.e., those effective against both grasses and broadleaf weeds.

Among such broad-spectrum herbicides, Euro-Lang has gained widespread use, containing the active ingredient imazethapyr and the bioactivator NN-21 acting as an antidote, and Euro-Lend, composed of imazamox and imazapir. The active components of these two herbicides primarily work by inhibiting the production and synthesis of essential amino acids required for weed growth.

Euro-Lang and Euro-Lend (or the similar herbicide Euro-Lightning) are applied in the "Clearfield" cultivation technology for sunflower. Their distinguishing advantage is the elimination of a wide range of difficult-to-kill weeds (ragweed, sow thistle, hemp, etc.). Both products are available in soluble concentrate form and are applied exclusively to sunflower crops via foliar application, targeting weed seedlings. Meanwhile, the herbicides have several differences requiring detailed consideration.

Composition:
Herbicide Euro-Lang consists of imazethapyr. This component belongs to the imidazolinone class and is primarily systemic, but it exhibits selective action. Imazethapyr suppresses weed development within 2-3 hours after entering their system and is highly effective against ragweed. Euro-Lang is an exclusively systemic herbicide!
Herbicide Euro-Lend contains two active components — imazamox and imazapir. Imazamox belongs to the selective systemic group. Imazapir, like imazamox or the imazethapyr in Euro-Lang, belongs to the imidazolinone class, but unlike imazethapyr, it is a contact-systemic herbicide with continuous action. Additionally, it exhibits high soil activity. Thus, Euro-Lend is not only systemic but also soil-active!

Compatibility
Herbicides Euro-Lang and Euro-Lend share the characteristic that they cannot be applied in tank mixtures with mineral fertilizers intended for sunflower feeding, as this may accelerate the penetration of active substances into crops and lead to their toxicity.
Meanwhile, Euro-Lang cannot be applied simultaneously with grass-specific herbicides (graminicides), and Euro-Lend is prohibited from being mixed in tank mixtures with ALS inhibitors (sulfonilureas and others) and organophosphorus insecticides.
Impact on crop rotation
After applying Euro-Lend, there are no restrictions on planting herbicide-tolerant "Clearfield" varieties of sunflower, rapeseed, and corn. Other varieties of the aforementioned crops, as well as legumes, rice, and oats, can only be planted after 9 months.
Meanwhile, wheat and rye can be sown after 4 months, sorghum after 11 months, buckwheat, millet, potatoes, and vegetable crops after 18 months, and sugar beet and fodder beet only after 24 months.
Herbicide Euro-Lang affects crop rotation differently. The active component imazethapyr retains its activity for several months after application, with its half-life potentially extending from 11 to 26 days. Therefore, the following intervals must be observed before planting subsequent crops: 4 months for winter wheat; 11 months for corn, spring and winter barley, spring wheat, oats, winter rye; 18 months for imidazolinone-tolerant sunflower, sorghum, rice; and 26 months for beet, rapeseed, and vegetable crops.
To minimize the impact of herbicides Euro-Lang and Euro-Lend on subsequent crops, they are recommended to be applied slightly earlier than usual. Optimal timing — when sunflower has 3-4 leaves.