Controlling buttercup in your pastures is key to producing healthy forage and cattle. Buttercup first emerges in the fall and winter; control it with DuraCor® herbicide in the fall or early spring.
Buttercup (Ranunculus acris) is an herbaceous perennial. It grows up to 3 feet in height with hairy, deeply lobed leaves divided into three to five segments. Flowers are glossy yellow and are ¾ inch in diameter with a greenish center. The plant blooms from late May to September, depending on temperature and moisture, and infestations are often described as a sea of yellow in pastures.
Buttercup can be found in pastures throughout most of the United States. It flourishes in pastures that have been heavily grazed or managed with minimal inputs and is more common in continuously grazed pastures. Livestock avoid grazing buttercup, as a toxin in the plant causes oral and gastrointestinal blisters; grazing avoidance often leads to patch grazing patterns in pastures.
Buttercup first emerges in the fall or winter; pasture management practices that suppress buttercup and promote grass growth prior to flowering are critical for control.
Treat buttercup with 12 to 20 fluid ounces per acre of DuraCor® herbicide. For best results, apply in the spring or fall when weeds are actively growing and conditions are favorable for plant growth. Apply 16 to 20 fluid ounces of DuraCor® herbicide per acre or 24 fluid ounces of NovaGraz™ herbicide plus 1% MSO v/v per acre, or GrazonNext® HL herbicide at 1.5 to 2.1 pints per acre, or 20 to 32 fluid ounces of GrazonPD3™ herbicide per acre. Use the lower rate when weeds are shorter than 6 inches tall and actively growing. Increase rate as plants become more mature, when weed foliage is tall and dense or when growing conditions are less than favorable or for longer residual control.
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White clover and annual lespedeza exhibit some initial injury (such as lodging and loss of vigor) but recover. NovaGraz™ and DuraCor® are not registered for sale or use in all states. Under normal field conditions DuraCor is non-volatile. DuraCor has no grazing or haying restrictions for any class of livestock, including lactating dairy cows, horses (including lactating mares) and meat animals prior to slaughter. Label precautions apply to forage treated with DuraCor and to manure and urine from animals that have consumed treated forage. Consult the label for full details. Always read and follow label directions.
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