Absence of Herbicide Cross-Resistance in Two Atrazine-Resistant Velvetleaf (Abutilon theophrasti) Biotypes

J. A. Gray, D. E. Stoltenberg and N. E. Balke

Field and greenhouse research was conducted to quantify the level of resistance to atrazine in Wisconsin (WRB1) and Maryland (MRB) velvetleaf biotypes and to determine cross-resistance of the WRB1 and MRB biotypes to other selected herbicides as compared to a Wisconsin atrazine-susceptible velvetleaf accession (WSA1). In field studies, the WRB1 and MRB biotypes survived atrazine applied POST at dosages as high as 4.5 kg ha -1 . In contrast, the WSA1 accession had 50% survival following a 1.1 kg ha -1 POST atrazine application. The WRB1 biotype demonstrated neither cross-resistance nor negative cross-resistance to alachlor, bentazon, bromoxynil, cyanazine, dicamba, linuron, metribuzin, or thifensulfuron. The MRB biotype demonstrated neither cross-resistance nor negative cross-resistance to alachlor, bentazon, dicamba, metribuzin, or thifensulfuron; slight negative cross-resistance was demonstrated to bromoxynil, cyanazine, and linuron. In greenhouse studies, the WRB1 and MRB biotypes were approximately 100-fold more resistant to atrazine than the WSA1 accession; the WRB1 and MRB biotypes demonstrated neither cross-resistance nor negative cross-resistance to alachlor, ametryn, bentazon, bromoxynil, cyanazine, dicamba, linuron, metribuzin, pendimethalin, terbacil, or thifensulfuron. Absence of cross-resistance to cyanazine, ametryn, metribuzin, and terbacil in the WRB1 and MRB biotypes of velvetleaf is in contrast to most other atrazine-resistant weed biotypes.

Weed Sci. 43:352-357 (1995)