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Organic vegetable grower wants dicamba cut-off to remain

A former member of the Arkansas Dicamba Task force is unhappy that a legislative committee and now the Arkansas legislative council want the April 15th cutoff date for dicamba applications to be extended. Shawn Peebles, an organic vegetable grower in northeast Arkansas (Woodruff and White County areas), says volatility of the dicamba herbicides is the problem. He tells Brownfield Ag News, “That’s where the problem is, is in the volatility and the fact that Monsanto is not taking responsibility for the fact that the product is volatile.”

Only BASF’s Engenia herbicide, in fact, was allowed for use in Arkansas last year, not Monsanto’s Xtendimax. Peebles’ vegetable crops were spared off-target dicamba damage last season, but he tells Brownfield, it was very close, “I didn’t have any damage due to dicamba this year. I did get dicamba within 20 feet. Our buffer zone is the only thing that protected us.”

If the application date is extended beyond April 15th, Peebles worries about his crops, especially the edamame he grows and sells up north, “Hey, if they want to spray dicamba on every acre in the state of Arkansas, I don’t care as long as you’ll insure me. I can’t get crop insurance or ANY insurance to protect be from dicamba.”

Peebles says dicamba damage would ruin his business. Peebles tells Brownfield he made is voice heard on the task force which recommended the April 15th date to the Arkansas Plant Board, but as far as he knows, the task force has no more say.