Herbicide Injury Symptoms

Herbicides Which Affect Seedling Growth:
Inhibitors of Both Shoots and Roots

Common Herbicides in the Group:

• alachlor (Lasso)

• metolachlor (Dual, Pennant)

• butachlor (Machete)

How Applied:

Soil applied.

Movement in the Plant:

These herbicides enter the plant from the soil where they are absorbed by roots or emerging shoots. Their movement in plants is limited.

Mode of Action:

These herbicides interfere with protein synthesis and normal cell division.

Common Symptoms:

Stunting and distortion of seedling or developing leaves.

Effects of Inhibitors of Both Shoots and Roots

The corn plant on the left shows the effects of metolachlor. Notice the stunting and leaf distortion.

This ornamental plant, Ageratum, exhibits the typical leaf distortion caused by this group of herbicides. In this case the herbicide was alachlor.