Published online by Cambridge University Press: 12 June 2017
The fate of the potassium salt of 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) when applied to birdsfoot trefoil (Lotus corniculatus L., var. Viking) and an intercross resistant to 2,4-D was studied. No difference in spray retention per mg fresh weight between the two trefoils was detected and more than 98% of 2,4-D-2-14C was absorbed within 2 days after application. Herbicide moved from treated leaves to young leaves, stems, and roots in about equal quantities. Seven days after treatment, 70% of the 14C activity of 2-propanol extracts of both trefoils was 2,4-D-2-14C; the remaining activity of the extract was from unknown metabolites of 2,4-D. The total activity recovered from the tolerant selection and Viking, respectively, was 57% and 50% of that applied. The methods used failed to establish a clear basis for the difference in reaction of the two birdsfoot trefoils to 2,4-D.