Kochia, a highly competitive weed well adapted to the Great Plains and western regions of the U.S. and Canada, has made its way to Missouri soybean fields. Wayne Flanary, University of Missouri Extension field specialist in agronomy, discovered large, scattered kochia plants in soybean fields in Atchison County, Missouri, which borders Iowa to the north and Nebraska to the west. He noted that flooding along the Missouri River and its tributaries likely carried the weed into agricultural fields. Though the weed species is not new to Missouri, this may be the first report of kochia showing up in cropland in the state. DTN reports the weed grows rapidly and aggressively outcompetes crops for water, nutrients and sunlight. It's also drought tolerant, producing up to 30,000 seeds per plant. These seeds have potential to germinate quickly -- within two or three hours under the right conditions.
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