Impact of Nano-based Herbicide Formulations Compared with Conventional Herbicides on Ameliorating Weed Management in Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)

The growing global demand for food necessitates a shift towards sustainable farming practices, especially in weed management. Nanotechnology is emerging as a suitable strategy to reduce chemicals usage while ameliorating bioherbicidal efficacy. This study aimed to develop nanoparticles containing diverse herbicides and evaluate their efficacy against dominant weeds in wheat fields, compared to conventional herbicides. Field experiments were conducted in southern Russia (Stalskiy region, Zardian) in 2023 and 2024, using nano-formulated herbicides containing various active ingredients (carfentrazone/bromoxynil + tribenuron-methyl, carfentrazone/bromoxynil + clodinafop–propargyl/cloquintocet-methyl, tribenuron-methyl + clodinafop–propargyl/cloquntocet-methyl) and (carfentrazone/bromoxynil + tribenuron-methyl + clodinafop–propargyl/cloquintocet-methyl), with different modes of action. Results showed that nanoformulated herbicides significantly reduced weed numbers and dry weight by >95% across all cases. The mixture of nano-tribenuron-methyl and nano-propargyl/cloquntocet-methyl achieved the greatest weed control with a 99% reduction. Overall, all nanoformulated herbicide combinations outperformed conventional herbicides in reducing weed populations. The lowest weed biomass was recorded for nano-formulated tribenuron-methyl (8.29 g m-2) and nano-carfentrazone/bromoxynil + nano-tribenuron-methyl (8.64 g m-2). The highest wheat yield (7610 kg ha-1) was obtained with nano-formulated tribenuron-methyl. Nano-formulated carfentrazone/bromoxynil + clodinafop – propargyl/cloquintocet-methyl significantly increased 1000-grain weight (55.1 g), number of spike (451.0 spike m-2), and number of tillers (345 m-2). © The Author(s) 2025.