Audio Blog: Differences Between Prodiamine and Dimension

What’s the difference between prodiamine and Dimension?

Yes, both products are pre-emergent herbicides. Dimension (dithiopyr) is more expensive than prodiamine, as there’s more generic competition with prodiamine. Prodiamine is a newer active than Dimension. Both products can be applied as a fertilizer granule or in liquid form. Prodiamine is yellow; however, it doesn’t have the staining tendencies that pendimethalin did. Dimension is more water-soluble than prodiamine. Both products can give you very similar results when the proper rates are used.

Now, the use rate is where we have issues. Most turf professionals don’t use a high enough rate of Dimension to get the equivalent results to prodiamine, especially when going early. Because Dimension is more water-soluble, it has a tendency to leach out quicker in early spring applications. You need 0.25 pounds of dithiopyr per acre to get good control. The fertilizer products with a 0.1% Dimension load only give you 0.175 pounds of dithiopyr when applied at a rate of 4 lb/M. You’d have to make two applications of this product in order to get good control. Even the 0.125% products on a single application are low. If you are using Dimension early in the spring, you need to go with an on-fertilizer product that has a higher percentage of dithiopyr, like the 0.15% Dimension products. For most people, they are too pricey.

Prodiamine is less water-soluble than Dimension. If you are going to make applications early in the spring, prodiamine will bind to the soil and be active longer under high-rain situations. It’s cheaper too! However, Dimension has a broader label. There are a few weeds on the Dimension label that prodiamine does not control. Dimension also gets post-emergent control of up to three-leaf stage crabgrass.

If you start early in the spring, use prodiamine. Otherwise, you need to plan on making two applications of Dimension. If you are treating closer to the time of crabgrass emergence, go ahead and use Dimension. Keep the rate higher with the Dimension on-fertilizer products if you want to get control of that one- to two-leaf crabgrass after it has emerged.

Nikki Hendrickson
Sales Representative