After proving its value in almond, apple and macadamia orchards and vineyards, Belanty fungicide from BASF is now also registered for use in cucurbits and fruiting vegetables.

Belanty brings a new dimension to Group 3 fungicide chemistry using molecular flexibility to achieve very robust disease control.

BASF horticulture technical specialist Mark Dicks says fruit, nut and vegetable growers have been relying on DMIs for years, with some older compounds possibly not working as well as they used to.

He said that with extensive use over time, disease pathogens can mutate and become less susceptible to certain chemistries. Belanty is a next-generation DMI that can restore the previous very high levels of control.

“New chemistry is always good news for growers as it extends rotation options and helps with resistance management in the long term.

“Belanty is easy to use, the plant uptake is fast and provides good, consistent residual control, but still with very short withholding periods.

“The flexible chemical structure of the Belanty active ingredient makes the product more robust in terms of developing resistance and a good option to use where potential DMI resistance might already exist.”

Belanty is newly registered to control gummy stem blight and powdery mildew in cucurbits, and both target spot and powdery mildew in fruiting vegetables. All the registrations apply to both field and protected crops,” Mr Dicks said.

“With gummy stem blight becoming a major concern in cucurbits crops all over the country, particularly in melon crops, Belanty has looked extremely promising in our trials, and we believe growers who use it strategically in programs are going to be very impressed with the results.”