Harry Quicke calls it “a gift that just keeps on giving.” Quicke, market development specialist, BASF professional vegetation management, is referring to the removal of hardwood brush with BASF's new herbicide, Chopper Gen2.

Chopper Gen2 is a major step ahead of BASF's previous Chopper herbicide, providing all the original benefits, with the significant addition of Transport Technology. With the use of Transport Technology, Chopper Gen2 “increases the amount of absorption and translocation of active ingredient throughout the plant. This results in more consistent, long-term control of vegetation at lower use-rates.” Therefore, a lower use-rate of Chopper Gen2 provides the same benefits and performance as original Chopper.

“BASF has developed this new technology, Chopper Gen2 herbicide, with Transport Technology that is specially designed to enhance uptake and translocation in mid-story hardwood vegetation,” said Quicke.

Removal of mid-story hardwoods is key to the maintenance of pine stands, and provides a bounty of benefits to the landowner — recreational, ecological, aesthetic, and financial. “This is a gift that just keeps on giving. The benefits to wildlife, the hunting experience, hunting leases, but then also when it comes time to harvest a stand, you have an open situation and it's much easier to inventory the stand and to know what you have. It's easier to harvest, site-prep, and replant.”

Application of Chopper Gen2 can be by ground or air. However, air application is only for site-prep, and application must be by ground for understory release. Chopper Gen2 is a fully registered herbicide approved by the EPA. It is environmentally sound, combining with an enzyme found only in plants, and is not harmful to humans, mammals, fish, birds, or insects.