St. Louis, Missouri
February 18, 2008
The American Soybean
Association (ASA) and
Plant Health Care, Inc.
(PHC) today announced that the "N-Hibit® Partnership" program
has been enhanced with a "Satisfaction Guarantee" for the 2008
growing season. The new program provides ASA members and other
qualified growers with a risk-free means to evaluate N-Hibit
Seed Treatment as a tool to lower Soybean Cyst Nematode (SCN)
pressure and improve soybean plant health and yield.
"ASA views this program as an opportunity for its members to
maximize soybean yield and profitability, and reduce the threat
of SCN damage," said ASA President John Hoffman, a soybean
producer from Waterloo, Iowa.
"Year after year and all across the country, results with
N-Hibit Seed Treatment have been positive," said Mike Cloutier,
PHC Vice President of U.S. Sales. "We want growers to share our
confidence, and the Satisfaction Guarantee assures them of a
full refund of the purchase price paid for N-Hibit if they are
not fully satisfied with its performance on treated acreage."
ASA member Michael Gray, of Elizabeth City, N.C., was one of the
growers who participated in the ASA Partnership Program in 2007.
He reported a yield gain of 4.6 bushels per acre on his
Partnership acres.
"Mid-season examination of the N-Hibit-treated plants showed no
visible signs of damage from soybean cyst nematode or from root
knot nematode," said Gray. Measurements showed increased plant
stand, nodes per acre, plant height, nodes per plant, and plant
weight in both roots and forage. Of these, plant stand counts at
8 percent more and nodes per acre (a strong indicator of yield)
at 15 percent more were significantly higher than in the
untreated acres.
"The yield monitor showed we harvested 50.8 bushels per acre at
13 percent moisture from the treated beans and 46.15 bushels
from the untreated," Gray said. "If it hadn’t turned off so dry
the second half of the season, I believe that yield difference
would have been even greater. I’m trying N-Hibit on more acres
in 2008."
"Replicated and commercial soybean field trials across
Midwestern and Southern states in 2006 and 2007 showed an
average yield gain of 7.2 percent, or 2.9 bushels per acre, with
N-Hibit Gold CST over the untreated control, said Dr. Ned
French, PHC Director of Field Biology and Development. "These
research trials have shown N-Hibit increases root mass and total
plant weight and health. N-Hibit produces more nodes per plant
and per acre, which is a key to increased yield.
"In addition to those trials, university field research has
shown that N-Hibit reduces SCN eggs significantly. We believe
N-Hibit can be a very economical and helpful tool in reducing
SCN egg counts and damage in soybeans. Earlier university
research has shown that N-Hibit reduces Root Knot Nematode and
Reniform Nematode eggs among roots by about 50 percent," Dr.
French said.
In the N-Hibit Partnership program, soybean growers are asked to
conduct their own on-farm trials to determine results with
N-Hibit on a commercial scale under their own growing conditions
and management systems.
Producers who visit the PHC booth at Commodity Classic during the kick-off
for the Partnership’s second year will be automatically entered
into a drawing for a shotgun that will be given away at the
close of the trade show," Cloutier said.
N-Hibit is a dry material that is not a restricted use product.
It is easy to apply by the seed dealer or in the hopper box, has
an excellent safety profile, and leaves no residuals in the
water, soil or on plants.
The active ingredient in N-Hibit and other Harp-N-Tek® products
is harpin protein, which is produced by disease causing bacteria
that attack plants. Harp-N-Tek products do not contain
pathogens, but cause the plant to respond as though being
attacked. Harpin proteins do not enter the plant. They bind with
the plant’s external harpin protein receptors, which are present
on seed, as well as foliage. This turns on the plant’s natural
self defense and growth systems. Then the harpin proteins
harmlessly disintegrate.
For further information on the N-Hibit Partnership Program,
phone PHC at 800-421-9051. Sign-up forms for the N-Hibit
Partnership Program will be available by phone and on the PHC
web site,
www.N-HibitPartners.com. Enrollment forms also will be
available at the PHC booth Number 719-721 at Commodity Classic.
Growers can access information about the program on the ASA web
site www.SoyGrowers.com.
The American Soybean
Association is the policy, domestic marketing, new uses,
research and international marketing advocate of the U.S.
soybean farmer. ASA is a membership organization representing
26,000 soybean producers. It's mission is to improve U.S.
soybean farmer profitability.
Plant Health Care, Inc., headquartered in Pittsburgh, PA, is
a wholly-owned subsidiary of Plant Health Care plc (AIM:PHC), a
leading provider of natural products for plants and soil. PHC
has operations in the United States, Mexico, the United Kingdom,
Spain, and the Netherlands. PHC products are for the landscape,
agriculture and land reclamation industries and are
environmentally beneficial. Through the commercialization of
these products, PHC is capitalizing on current long-term trends
toward natural systems and biological products for plant care
and soil and water management.
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