John Deere, in partnership with Syngenta Crop Protection, announced a new liquid Central Insecticide System to help growers control corn rootworm with more efficiency and reliability while planting corn.

“This central fill, closed-handling system allows the operator to efficiently and accurately apply insecticide at planting while decreasing potential insecticide exposure to the operator,” says Rob Rippchen, division marketing manager, John Deere Seeding. “The new liquid system uses Force CS, which offers superior control of corn rootworms and is the premier product for control of early-season pests such as white grub, wireworm, and cutworms.”

The Central Insecticide System draws Force CS from its closed packaging via direct injection, mixes it with water, delivers the solution to the individual planter row units, and applies it in a T-band over the seed furrow. Plus, as a result of this partnership, growers are provided with complete, top-notch service and support from both Syngenta and John Deere.

“This ensures precise coverage on and around the seed for excellent rootworm control,” explains Rippchen. “Also, the Central Insecticide System is a pressure-based system which provides outstanding row-to-row accuracy compared to granular insecticide systems. The system is fully integrated with the planter and compatible with Refuge Plus.”

The Central Insecticide System will be available on John Deere 1790 Planters (30-inch rows only), 1770 NT CCS Planters with Pro-Series Row Units, and DB 80 and DB 90 CCS Planters with Pro-Series Row Units. The system will help growers realize cost and time-saving efficiencies while optimizing the potential for increased corn yields. The new system will be available for the spring 2008 planting season.