Comprehensive Approach to Rodent Control

Every autumn, in addition to the troubles faced by farmers with pests, diseases, and weeds, another concern arises: the fight against harmful rodent-like pests. Without proper control or with insufficient effectiveness, these “uninvited guests” can significantly damage winter crops and perennial plantations, negatively affecting their overwintering. To avoid these risks, specialists from Ukravit recommend conducting regular monitoring and approaching the problem comprehensively.

This is reported by AgroReview

“The autumn migration of harmful rodent-like pests into winter crop fields, perennial grasses, orchards, berry bushes, warehouses, and elevators is inevitable: due to weather conditions, the available feed supply from previous periods is decreasing, and they begin to move in search of it, – notes Oleksandr Myhlovets, head of the agronomy department at Ukravit. – Today, our technical support managers from various regions are observing an average of 1-2 active colonies of rodents per hectare in winter crops, while in perennial grasses and non-agricultural lands, it’s 1-3, and in some places, 4-5. If there are 3-5 or more active colonies per hectare, it is necessary to apply rodenticides. Furthermore, a comprehensive approach is important in controlling harmful rodent-like pests. In particular, agronomic measures play a significant role in reducing their numbers – soil cultivation, adherence to crop rotation, timely and lossless harvesting of the preceding crop, and the destruction of weeds both in fields and in forest belts, along roadways.”

To control the population of harmful rodent-like pests in the autumn period, Oleksandr recommends choosing the rodenticide Brodivit (brodifacoum, 0.25%). Its active ingredient has a gastrointestinal effect and is a second-generation anticoagulant. The mechanism of action involves disrupting the formation of vitamin K1, which is necessary for producing prothrombin complex proteins. After consuming the bait, the rodents experience impaired blood clotting, leading to an increased tendency for bleeding and death.

Thanks to the auxiliary substances and modern formulation, the product adheres excellently to the grain. One package can protect an area of over 30 hectares. Moreover, the product is non-toxic to beneficial microorganisms and does not accumulate in the surrounding natural environment.