Three trials were carried out to verify if the site of formesafen, absorption leaves or soil, affects the efficacy of controling this herbicide in wild poinsettia biotypes resistant and susceptible to the product; and to determine which plant structures are more important for fomesafen absorption. In the first two trials, fomesafen dose-response was evaluated on biotypes susceptible and resistant to PROTOX inhibitors, in the pre (first trial) and post emergence (second trial) applications. In a third trial, different deposition sites of fomesafen were evaluated using the double pot system to verify the structures of wild poinsettia plants which were most important to fomesafen absorption. Overall, the results indicated that shoot absorption of fomesafen was more limited on wild poinsettia biotypes with PROTOX resistance than on susceptible ones and that these differences between biotypes were less important when applied in pre-emergence. When applied to soil, fomesafen efficacy increased when the herbicide was placed near wild poinsettia shoots than close to their roots. These results support the hypothesis that leaf differences between resistant and susceptible plants may limit fomesafen absorption on biotypes resistant to PROTOX inhibitors.
weed resistance; wild poinsettia; fomesafen
