Electric weeding

I saw something the other day that I thought was incredibly cool. I'll tell you about it next. I saw a tractor with a rigging out in front of it going through a field of sugar beets. There were a bunch of applicator bars on the rigging, and they dropped down into the foliage in the field. Just about every five seconds you see several flashes of light in the foliage, like many strikes of lightning. To explain…

The most destructive weeds in American agriculture, such as Palmer amaranth, waterhemp, horseweed (marestail), and giant ragweed, have evolved resistance to multiple common herbicides such as glyphosate, atrazine, and ALS inhibitors.

Herbicide resistance and environmental concerns have increased interest in electric weeding as a sustainable alternative. Engineered for quantifiable results in the field, LASCO focuses on power, precision, and reliable performance in every pass.

The long-term health and environmental problems caused by herbicides have risen in prominence at the same time that weeds have adapted to herbicides down to the DNA level and have therefore rendered them far less effective. If your herbicide kills 95% of the weeds, it’s the 5% of immune weeds that survive and reproduce.

Research in the 1970s led to the first commercial electric weeder, the Lasco Lightning Weeder LW-5. The technology operates similarly to a microwave oven: the applicator bar delivers an electrical pulse down the stem of the plant to heat up water molecules in the weeds to effectively kill them while also reducing seed viability and biomass.

LASCO provides farmers with effective, chemical-free tools so they can thrive, based on real experience and a shared commitment to improving soil health and yield, giving them greater control, confidence and freedom in managing their crops.