Summary:
The persistence of [14C] 2,4‐D at a rate equivalent to 1 kg/ha was compared under laboratory conditions in samples of heavy clay, sandy loam, and clay loam at 85% of field capacity moisture and 20 ± 1°C which had either received no pre‐treatment, or had been pre‐treated for 7 days at the 2 μg/g level with the herbicides benzoylprop‐ethyl, diclofop‐methyl, dinitramine, flamprop‐methyl, nitrofen, picloram, tri‐allate, trifluralin, and a combination of tri‐allate and trifluralin. The breakdown of [14C] 2,4‐D was also studied in the same soils that had similarly received pre‐treatments of 2 μg/g of the cereal seed dressing Vitaflo‐DB, the insecticide, malathion, and a combination of Vitaflo‐DB and malathion.
In each soil type, the half‐life of the 2,4‐D was similar regardless of whether the soil had, or had not, received any pre‐treatment, indicating that none of the chemicals investigated adversely affected the soil degradation of 2,4‐D.