Punch planting, flame weeding and stale seedbed for weed control in row crops

Punch planting is introduced as a new method to reduce weeds within rows in organically grown crops. In this method a hole is punched in the soil, and a seed is dropped into it, without seedbed preparation and soil disturbance outside the hole. In 2 years, punch planting with flame weeding, normal planting with flame weeding and normal planting without flame weeding were compared in fodder beet for five planting dates. Each planting date represented a lag‐period since establishment of the stale seedbed. Over all planting times and years, punch planting with flame weeding reduced intra‐row weed densities by 30% at the two to four leaf stage of fodder beet compared with normal drilling with flame weeding. Punch planting with flame weeding also reduced intra‐row weed densities by 50% compared with normal drilling without flame weeding. In general, there was no improved performance of punch planting with flame weeding over years by later planting, but delayed planting reduced intra‐row weed densities significantly. Over 2 years, 240 day degrees Celsius (4 weeks) planting delay reduced intra‐row weed densities in the range of 68–86% depending on plant establishment procedure. Punch planting with flame weeding offers a promising method of weed control in organic farming.     

Fertilisation and weed control effects on yield and weeds in durum wheat grown under rain-fed conditions in a Mediterranean climate

Summary A field study was undertaken to examine the effect of fertiliser type and weed control system on grain yield, yield components and weed population in durum wheat ( Triticum turgidum. var. durum) grown in a 4-year rotation [bare fallow–barley ( Hordeum vulgare )–vetch ( Vicia sativa )–wheat]. Fertilisation treatments were: no fertilisation, organic fertilisation with 2500 kg ha⁻¹ of compost (sheep manure and cereal straw) and chemical fertilisation with 100–60–60 kg ha⁻¹ of NPK. Weed-control treatments were: no control, herbicide, harrowing with long-flex spring tines and strip sowing with inter-row hoeing. Chemical fertilisation increased grain yield with respect to the other treatments, amongst which no significant differences were noted. Weed-control systems afforded no improvement in yield compared with controls; indeed, yields obtained using inter-row hoeing were lower. The weed population consisted of a large variety of species, of which the most important were Convolvulus arvensis and Polygonum aviculare . Application of weed-control systems reduced weed density. Herbicide was the most effective, reducing weed biomass by 80%, whilst harrowing and hoeing reduced weed biomass by 40% and 52% respectively. Inter-row hoeing does not appear to be a viable alternative to herbicides, when used as the sole weed control method in a non-diverse cropping system in Mediterranean climates. The lack of response to compost suggests a need for further long-term research.     

Effects of three management strategies on the seedbank, emergence and the need for hand weeding in an organic arable cropping system

The effects of three different weed management strategies on the required input of hand weeding in an arable organic farming system, the weed seedbank in the soil and the emerging weed seedling emergence were studied from 1996 to 2003. Strategies were based on population dynamic models and aimed for (1) control of weeds as carried out in standard organic farming practice, (2) control of all residual weeds that grow above the crop and (3) prevention of all weed seed return to the soil. Under all strategies, the size of the seedbank increased during the conversion from conventional to organic farming systems. The increase under strategy 3 was significantly smaller than the increase under the other strategies. From 1999 onwards, the weed densities in plots treated with strategy 3 became significantly lower than the weed densities in plots treated with the other strategies. The time needed for hand‐weeding required to prevent weed seed return, in addition to the time needed in standard organic farming practices, reduced during the course of the study. A management strategy aimed at the prevention of seed return (strategy 3) can reduce the size of the increase of the seedbank, which is usually observed after transition from conventional to organic farming. This study provides unique real‐world data that are essential for evaluating population dynamic models. The results may contribute to the development of weed management systems based on ‘no seed’ threshold strategies and to a further decrease in the dependence on herbicides.     

An on-farm approach to investigate the impact of diversified crop rotations on weed species richness and composition in winter wheat

Weed species diversity may benefit from organic farming due to enhanced temporal diversification of crop species in a rotation and omission of herbicide applications. However, in intensively managed conventional systems, little evidence exists as to what extent diversified crop rotations contribute to higher weed species richness. Using an on-farm approach, the effect of crop rotation (organic, conventional diverse (CD) and conventional simple (CS) crop rotations) and weed control (with vs. without) on weed species richness, cover, community composition and crop biomass, was analysed in 24 winter wheat fields. Weed species with beneficial functions for invertebrates and birds were analysed separately. Weed species richness was higher in the organic crop rotation, but did not differ between CD and CS crop rotations. Weed control treatment reduced species richness in both conventional rotations, but not in the organic one. Redundancy analyses revealed that crop rotation intensity accounted for the largest part of the explained variation in weed species composition. Results from the study indicate that the maintenance of weed species richness and conservation of species with important ecological functions requires not only temporal diversification of crop species in the rotation, but also an adjustment of weed control strategies.     

小麦田不同杂草群落及防除时间对小麦产量的影响

为明确小麦田不同杂草群落及防除时间对小麦产量的影响,于2013—2015连续两年在山东省聊城市高唐县小麦田中设无草对照区、禾本科杂草区、阔叶杂草区以及混合杂草自然发生区4种不同杂草群落以及不同的杂草防除时间,测定在不同条件下小麦产量及各项产量构成指标的情况。结果表明,阔叶杂草对小麦产量的影响大于禾本科杂草,冬小麦田杂草的最佳防除时间为4月1日之前,在此期间除草对小麦产量影响均不大,但之后防除或不除草会造成小麦严重减产甚至绝产,2014年4月15日除草可造成在阔叶杂草区和杂草混合生长区的小麦减产30.5%和32.6%,不除草可造成在禾本科杂草区、阔叶杂草区和杂草混生区的小麦减产8.6%、91.4%和94.3%,2015年趋势和2014年一致。从构成小麦产量的3个指标来看,杂草危害主要影响小麦的总穗数,其次为穗粒数,对千粒重影响最小。     

The effect of crop,cultivation and seed addition for birds on surface weed seed densities in arable crops during winter

Weed seeds present an agronomic threat, but are also an important food resource for wildlife in winter. Weed seed densities on the soil surface in winter were examined from 1999 to 2002 in 105 fields on three different farms in UK. The effect of the preceding crop, cultivation, position within the field and the application of seed for birds (bird seed) on surface seed abundance and species composition was tested. Six or fewer species comprised c. 80% of the weed seeds. By January of each study year, the densities of seeds important for farmland birds (key seeds) were 73% or 87% lower compared with early winter on two of the farms, but were stable on the third where seeds were incorporated through cultivation. At the edge and mid‐field, seed densities only exceeded 400 m^?2 in 17%, 10% and 12% of fields for total, key and dicotyledonous seeds respectively. The preceding crop only affected seed densities at one site; stubbles of winter barley had fewer seeds compared with winter wheat or spring barley. Seed densities varied between the edge and mid‐field, but trends were inconsistent between sites. The density of the larger seeds (Atriplex patula, Viola arvensis, Polygonum aviculare and Chenopodium album) were reduced in fields receiving bird seed. The objectives of weed control and conservation may not be mutually exclusive because seed return was most reduced where the ground remained uncultivated through the winter, yet this also provided the best foraging opportunities for surface feeding seed predators.     

Spatial patterns,species richness and cover in weed communities of organic and conventional no‐tillage spring wheat systems

Heterogeneous field conditions are ubiquitous throughout agricultural systems and have given rise to the practice of site‐specific management, in an effort to increase sustainability and/or homogenise growing conditions and thereby increase crop yields. The spatial pattern of weeds in conventional systems is widely accepted to be aggregated, but there have been no scientific studies regarding the spatial pattern of weed distribution in organic systems. Using a combination of aggregation measures and quadrat variance techniques, this study compared the spatial pattern of weed distribution in conventionally managed no‐tillage spring wheat fields to those of organically managed spring wheat fields. Per cent weed cover data (by species) were collected in the summers of 2005 and 2006 from transects located in conventional no‐tillage and organic spring wheat fields. Weed cover was aggregated in both the conventional and the organic systems, but the patterns of aggregation were different for the two systems. Conventional no‐tillage systems showed a patch/gap pattern, while organic systems showed multiple scales of patchiness with few gaps. These results suggest that processes causing aggregation in the two systems may be different and that site‐specific management may be applicable to organic systems as well as conventional spring wheat systems.