As farmers across Indiana head into planting season, a familiar challenge looms: how to protect corn and soybean crops from increasingly aggressive weeds without adding cost, complexity or risk to already tight margins. Helena Agri-Enterprises is positioning a new suite of herbicides as part of the solution, emphasizing longer-lasting control, fewer field passes and more reliable early-season performance.
The company’s latest product, Testament
, is designed to give growers a stronger start. The pre-emergence herbicide delivers both rapid knockdown of emerged weeds and extended residual protection against new growth. For Midwestern farmers racing against narrow planting windows and unpredictable spring weather, that dual action could reduce the need for multiple tank mixes and repeated applications, saving time and fuel while improving crop establishment.
Testament targets a broad spectrum of annual grasses, broadleaf weeds and sedges across corn and soybean acres, including field corn, popcorn and processing sweet corn. Its formulation also allows for flexible crop rotations, an important consideration for growers balancing agronomic decisions with volatile market conditions. By simplifying weed control programs early in the season, the product aims to help farmers maintain cleaner fields and protect yield potential from the outset.
Helena is also expanding its soybean portfolio with Sinister® Nexus, a newly registered three-way herbicide expected to be available in limited quantities in 2026, pending state approvals. Together, the two products offer growers more options to rotate chemistries and diversify weed management strategies — a key step in slowing the spread of herbicide-resistant species that have plagued fields across the region.
Complementing both herbicides is Grounded®, an oil-based adjuvant designed to improve how spray applications perform in the field. By enhancing deposition and helping herbicides remain concentrated in the upper soil layer — where weed seeds germinate — Grounded can extend the effectiveness of pre-emergence treatments.
“Grounded will keep that herbicide in the top zone for a very long time,” said Bill Smith, strategic marketing manager with Helena’s Products Group. “As weed pressure increases, growers are seeing how it helps that investment go a little bit further.”
For producers in Indiana and Michigan, where resistant weeds and erratic weather continue to test management decisions, the emphasis on durability, efficiency and flexibility reflects a broader shift in crop protection. Rather than relying on a single pass or product, many farmers are adopting layered approaches — and Helena’s latest offerings are designed to fit squarely within that evolving strategy.
For more information and availability, contact your local Helena representative, or visit www.helenaagri.com.
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