Method for safening crops from the phytotoxic effects of herbicides by use of phosphorated esters

A method of protecting a plant from unintentional phytotoxic injury from application of a herbicidally-effective amount of a herbicidal compound to the locus of said plant, which method comprises applying to said locus an effective amount of one or more safening compounds having formula (I):

• wherein
• T and T1 are independently selected from the group of hydrogen, alkyl, haloalkyl, alkoxyalkyl, alkenyl, and alkynyl;
• U is O or S, and;
• V, W, X, Y, and Z are independently selected from the group of hydrogen, halogen, alkyl, haloalkyl, and alkoxy;
• and,
• wherein
• said herbicidal compound is a 3-isoxazolidinone having formula (II):
• wherein:
• R1 and R2 are independently selected from C1-C4 alkyl;
• R3 is hydrogen, halogen, phenylamino, or —OR4 in which R4 is hydrogen, lower alkyl, alkenyl, alkynyl, alkoxyalkyl up to 6 carbons, phenylmethyl, C2-C4 acyl, haloacyl, phenylacyl, alkylcarbonylamino, or phenylcarbonylamino;
• X is hydrogen, lower alkyl, or halogen;
• Y is halogen, cyano, C1-C4 alkoxy, or 4,5-methylenedioxy, and;
• n is 0, 1, or 2.