MANA to launch Nimitz non-fumigant nematicide in US

Makhteshim-Agan of North America(MANA) developed Nimitz (fluensulfone) and will market the product in the United States. US’s southeast vegetable growers will have a new tool in 2014 to knock down plant-crippling nematodes. It’s a nonfumigant product that kills nematodes.

Nimitz is a broad-spectrum, nonfumigant nematicide that will be available to Southeast vegetable growers later in 2014, providing particularly good control of root-knot nematodes, said David Langston, plant pathologist with the University of Georgia Cooperative Extension.

“Fumigants are a little bit harder to use than regular pesticides because you have to have specialized equipment and very specialized application. With a nonfumigant, you’ve got a lot more flexibility in how you can use that product,” Langston said.

The new product provides a much quicker plant-back interval after application, he said. “With a fumigant, you might have to wait 20 to 30 days before you can plant back into that application area. With Nimitz, within seven days you can plant back into it,” he said.

For those growers who choose to try the product, Langston recommends using it as either a preplant incorporated treatment or a drip application.

“If growers are using Nimitz on their first-crop plastic use it as a preplant incorporated treatment,” he said. “If their coming with subsequence crops (in the same plastic), use it as a drip application in between crops to knock back nematode poplutions … I really think that is going to be the main application for it."

Typically, nonfumigant nematistat stun or immobilize nematodes for a period of time but the nematodes come back. Nimitz outright kills them. “That to me is a big plus,” he said.