What actually works in wheat weed control when the old spray plan starts slipping? In this episode of Red Dirt Agronomy, Dave Deken, Brian Arnall, and Josh Lofton sit down with Liberty Galvin at AgriFest in Enid to talk through the real-world decisions that separate a clean wheat field from a frustrating one. The conversation covers pre-emergent herbicides, burndown programs, delayed planting, competitive wheat canopies, and why one weed-control strategy rarely fits every field.

Liberty also breaks down why producers need to think beyond chemistry alone. From no-till residue and seedbank behavior to variety selection, tillage timing, and even the role of fire and chaff lining, this episode is packed with practical ideas for Oklahoma wheat producers facing ryegrass, brome, cheat, and other tough weed problems. It is a sharp, funny, highly useful discussion about managing weeds with better timing, better systems, and fewer assumptions.

Top 10 takeaways

Detailed Timestamped Rundown
00:00–01:34 — Dave opens Episode 509 and frames the show around a question many wheat producers are asking: what do you do when the old reliable spray program is not getting the job done anymore?
01:34–03:03 — The crew records live from AgriFest in Enid, with a quick round of banter before introducing Liberty Galvin and setting up the conversation around current wheat weed-control challenges.
03:03–05:06 — Liberty gives an update on building her program at OSU and describes her “spaghetti plate method” of trying multiple ideas until a clearer research direction starts to form.
05:06–06:06 — She explains a pre-emergent herbicide study funded by the Wheat Commission, including trials at Lahoma, Perkins, and Chickasha, and how dramatically different those environments behaved.
06:06–07:15 — Liberty shifts to a cultural weed-control and IPM study, comparing multiple systems, including variety selection, to see which wheat types compete best against weeds.
07:15–09:28 — The discussion turns to delayed planting. Liberty explains how cooler temperatures and moisture patterns affect winter weed emergence, and why delaying planting can help knock out the first flush.
09:28–11:02 — Josh and Brian push on the tradeoffs: smaller, later wheat may conserve resources for spring, but more open soil can also invite weed emergence.
11:02–15:13 — The group digs into species-specific weed behavior, especially Italian ryegrass, and talks through spring residual opportunities, bare ground at green-up, and mixing herbicide timings and modes of action.
15:13–17:34 — Economics enter the picture. Liberty points out how hard it is to recommend multiple passes in a $4 wheat market, while Brian argues that badly infested fields can still justify stronger programs.
17:34–20:21 — They compare delayed planting, tillage, roundup burndown, and no-till systems, with Liberty sharing observations that residue-heavy no-till fields may not always favor soil-applied pre products.
20:21–24:23 — The conversation moves into tillage in long-term no-till, including when precision tillage might help, how moisture affects the operation, and how occasional soil inversion could influence resistant weed problems.
24:23–28:01 — Dave asks how long weed seeds persist. Liberty gives a great primer on seedbanks, explaining why many grasses tend to have shorter dormancy while some broadleaf seeds can remain viable for years or even decades.
28:01–31:44 — Josh shares a story about deep flipping fields and unexpectedly bringing crabgrass back. That leads into a broader point from Liberty: selection pressure drives weed problems, so no single tactic can carry the whole load.
31:44–35:14 — Josh asks Liberty to explain her identity as a weed ecologist rather than a purely herbicide-focused weed scientist. She lays out why understanding weed biology helps producers exploit weak points with smarter management.
35:14–39:11 — The crew tackles the myth that healthy soil alone eliminates weeds, then pivots into fire as a weed-management tool, including controlled burns, chaff lining, and research showing seed destruction under the right conditions.
39:11–42:31 — They explore what fire can and cannot do, how residue burns sometimes create cleaner zones, and why chaff lining could eventually reduce sprayed acres by concentrating weed pressure into narrow strips.
42:31–45:56 — The show closes with a plug for Winter Crop School, more Oklahoma burn-talk humor, and a final thank-you to Liberty for a practical and entertaining conversation.

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