Roundup Hybridization System (RHS) in Hybrid Seed Corn.

The Roundup Hybridization System (RHS) will replace detasseling in hybrid seed maize production.  RHS utilizes a transgenic maize trait (MON87427) created by Monsanto that exhibits tolerance to glyphosate in all plant tissues except male reproductive tissues.  A method for ensuring a consistent ability to induce optimal male sterility across a broad range of maize varieties using this trait is described in United States Patent Application Publication No. US 2011/0126310.  Carefully researched glyphosate application rates and timings maximize glyphosate delivery to the developing male reproductive tissues, selectively eliminating male fertility and the need for manual or mechanical detasseling.  The purpose of this review is to describe the selective utilization of inbred prescriptive spray application techniques to mitigate the occasional injury observed from late glyphosate sterility applications to specific maize inbreds.  Prescriptive spray application techniques include the following approaches: use of even flow spray nozzles targeted over the whorl on the maize plant, the use of nozzles capable of producing large droplets, the use of reduced glyphosate application rates, the use of decreased spray volumes, and the use of single applications as compared to multiple applications of glyphosate in maize RHS fields.