Growers of cotton, corn, strawberries, potatoes and vegetable crops have a new foliar tool with a unique new mode of action to battle mites, whiteflies and psyllids. OBERON ® 2 SC Miticide/Insecticide from Bayer CropScience is now registered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for immediate sale and use within the United States, although some state labels may be pending. Please check with your local agency or Bayer CropScience representative to determine if OBERON is approved for use in your state.

“Bayer CropScience is proud to bring another brand new and much needed chemical class to the marketplace,” says Jon Mixson, OBERON product manager for Bayer CropScience.

“The active ingredient of OBERON, spiromesifen, is the first member of a new class of chemistry called tetronic acids,” explains Mixson. “The product also provides a brand new, unique mode of action—a lipid biosynthesis inhibitor, or LBI—making OBERON an attractive new option to help growers, Pest Control Advisers and crop consultants manage insects and insect resistance.”

OBERON is highly active against all mite development stages including eggs, although juvenile stages often are more susceptible than adults. It’s also highly effective against whitefly and psyllid nymphs and even has a significant effect on the otherwise difficult-to-control pupal stages of these pests.

Field-tested since the late 1990s, OBERON has been gaining considerable acclaim with University researchers around the country, who see it as an ideal fit to protect other chemistries from overuse and subsequent resistance.

Dr. Peter Ellsworth, extension entomologist at the University of Arizona in Maricopa, has tested OBERON in Western cotton for several years and says it provides needed flexibility in the marketplace. “It’s great to have access to new chemistry without cross-resistance,” he says. “We’re really being smart about insecticide choices and inputs. What we see in OBERON, we hope, is yet another highly selective whitefly control agent.”

In vegetables, University of Arizona Entomologist Dr. John Palumbo sees an excellent fit for OBERON later in the season, after applications of ADMIRE ® Systemic Protectant ™ at planting. “OBERON is extremely important for resistance management. Now we have something to rotate away from the neonicotinoids. That’s what has us excited: number one, it is effective; and number two, it is another mode of action.”

Effective as either a preventive or threshold treatment, OBERON offers flexible rates and application timing, explains Mixson. “For best results, whiteflies or mites should be treated at the beginning of population build-up and before leaf damage and discoloration.”

“Timing is very important,” echoes Palumbo. “You need to start early. It needs to be sprayed in early population development. OBERON works very effectively if applied correctly.”

OBERON is approved in certain crops for application by air and ground equipment and through overhead irrigation systems, shows good plant compatibility, and can be safely tankmixed with other crop protection products and micronutrients.

Bayer CropScience LP is the U.S. business of Bayer CropScience, which has its global headquarters in Monheim, Germany. Bayer CropScience, a subsidiary of Bayer AG with annual sales of about EUR 5.8 billion (2003), is one of the world’s leading innovative crop science companies in the areas of crop protection, non-agricultural pest control, seeds and plant biotechnology. The company offers an outstanding range of products and extensive service backup for modern, sustainable agriculture and for non-agricultural applications. Bayer CropScience has a global workforce of about 19,000 and is represented in more than 120 countries, ensuring proximity to dealers and consumers.