For many homeowners, weeds are an irritating inconvenience, but for farmers growing the nation's food supply, they're an economic liability.

WeedSOFT 2004 is a diagnostic and analytic computer software program that can help farmers select the best weed management solutions for their specific problems, said Kansas State University Research and Extension weed specialist Dallas Peterson. First developed by the University of Nebraska, WeedSOFT later evolved into a regional project with the cooperation of scientists at K-State, the University of Illinois, Michigan State University, the University of Missouri, Purdue University, and the University of Wisconsin.

"WeedSOFT is a comprehensive set of tools that can help farmers with each phase of management – from weed identification to selecting the most cost-effective, environmentally-sound treatment," Peterson said.

The ADVISOR module in WeedSOFT is the main tool. The user, typically a farmer, inputs field-specific soil and environmental information, including soil pH, distance to ground- and surface-water, soil texture, soil organic matter content, the densities and heights of each weed species, and such economic information such as the potential crop yield without weeds and the anticipated crop price.

The 2004 version of the software, currently available, includes several updates. At $50, it also is 75 percent lower in cost than the previous version, Peterson said.

"In addition to providing updates for our weed management databases, each year brings new features and capabilities to the WeedSOFT software," the agronomist said.

The features of WeedSOFT 2004 include:

* WeedVIEW, which is a weed identification database containing descriptions and photographs of 64 weeds prevalent in the participating states.

* A seed calculator that calculates the amount of crop seed needed for a field and the cost.

* A record-keeping module, which allows a grower to track ADVISOR- recommended herbicide treatments that have been applied to fields.

* A herbicide tank-mix calculator that indicates the amount of selected herbicide to add to a tank mix. The module also can print a load ticket for easy reference. (ADVISOR)

* Learning modules that were developed to provide information about how and why ADVISOR made recommendations.

In addition, ADVISOR now can make recommendations selectively if a herbicide-resistant crop is planted. It can make recommendations on crop rotation restrictions for up to three years.

Beyond that, the EnviroFX module can be used to determine some of the potential environmental impacts of specific herbicide treatments. It has been updated and is available in all participating states.

For more information or to order WeedSOFT 2004, interested persons can visit http://weedsoft.unl.edu.