Direct control of perennial weeds between crops – Implications for organic farming

Melander, Bo; Holst, Niels; Rasmussen, Ilse A.; Hansen, Preben Klarskov

doi:10.1016/j.cropro.2012.04.029

Cited by 45 publications

(49 citation statements)

References 25 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…C. arvense and perennials in general were both neutral to cover crop and manuring, while E. repens responded to manure application. Insignificant or varying responses of C. arvense to shallow post-harvest cultivations or cover-crop growing have also been observed in other studies (e.g., Brandsaeter et al, 2011;Melander et al, 2012). Brandsaeter et al (2010) and Tørresen et al (2010) infer that post-harvest measures against C. arvense populations showing little or varying readiness of adventive buds on roots to sprout in late summer and autumn would have a limited effect since innate bud dormancy makes it difficult to exhaust the carbohydrate reserves in the roots.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 73%

Incompatibility between fertility building measures and the management of perennial weeds in organic cropping systems

Melander

Rasmussen

Olesen

2016

Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

A B S T R A C TFertility building measures are important components in improving the productivity of organic cropping systems without livestock. However, some measures seem to be incompatible with the control of perennial weeds that can have adverse effects such as significant weed competition. The influence of fertility building measures (N 2 -fixing crops in the crop sequence, cover crops and manuring) and the abundance of perennial weeds were studied in a long-term crop rotation experiment at two locations in Denmark. The aim was to gain insight into the factors that influence the growth of perennial weed species occurring in mixed stands. Data were obtained from three cycles of four-year arable crop rotations comprising various cash crops in rotations with and without annual whole-year grass-clover as green manure and subjected to four treatment combinations: with and without animal manure and with and without cover crops. Severe outbreaks of perennial weed problems did not occur at the location that had the highest soil fertility, whereas the other site demonstrated dynamic growth of Cirsium arvense and Elytrigia repens. Grain legumes tended to promote the growth of C. arvense, while manuring was neutral to C. arvense but beneficial to E. repens. Cover crops assisted the growth of E. repens since prolonged mechanical interventions were not possible. Compatibility was only achieved with grass-clover and C. arvense, meaning that green manure crops suitable for cutting and mulching could offer an important management option against C. arvense but not against E. repens.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 73%

Incompatibility between fertility building measures and the management of perennial weeds in organic cropping systems

Melander

Rasmussen

Olesen

2016

Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Also studies made in Norway and Denmark managed to significantly reduce perennial weeds by means of stubble cultivation (Brandsaeter et al 2012, Melander et al 2012. In Finland, stubble cultivation could also be beneficial for the control of perennial weeds if the autumn season is dry and warm (Vanhala et al 2006).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Perennial weeds are recognised as an increasing challenge in organic farming in the Nordic countries (Salonen et al 2011, Brandsaeter et al 2012, Melander et al 2012. In Finland, Elymus repens (L.) Gould is the most abundant perennial weed, but also Cirsium arvense L. and Sonchus arvensis L. are becoming more common in organic farming (Riesinger 2010, Salonen et al 2011.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For the tillage of bare fallow, many types of machinery can be used, for example S-tine harrows, tined cultivators, disc harrows/cultivators, rotary cultivators, power harrows and rotary spade harrows (Kristensen et al 2010, Melander et al 2012. The Kvick-Finn weed-cultivator (KF-cultivator) is a fairly new type of machinery, specially designed to lift roots of perennial weeds up to the soil surface and thus, increase the efficacy of bare fallow against vegetatively propagating weed species.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Intensifying bare fallow strategies to control Elymus repens in organic soils

Lötjönen

Salonen

2016

AFSci

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Perennial weeds are an increasing challenge in organic farming in the Nordic countries. The aim of this study was to compare different tillage methods in the control of Elymus repens by using two intensified bare fallow strategies. Two field experiments consisted of three ploughing methods and seven fallow methods. The experiments were carried out in organic soils in Central Finland. The methods applied in the brief fallow before cereal sowing (exp. 1) were not effective enough against E. repens. Due to wet weather conditions in the spring the fallow period was limited to two weeks in both years, which did not seem to be enough time. In the late summer fallow after ley (exp. 2), the Kvick-Finn weed-cultivator destroyed E. repens very effectively; on average 5% of E. repens remained alive in the barley crop in the autumn of the following year. After use of ordinary cultivators 10% of E. repens remained alive, after use of the spade harrow 25% and after frequent mowing over 50% remained alive, respectively. As a result of effective E. repens control, barley yield was about 1000 kg ha -1 higher than without any fallow. In conclusion, effective control of E. repens is achieved with proper machinery and repeated treatments at the optimal time.

show abstract

“…However, careful management is necessary to prevent the build-up of perennial weeds such as docks (Rumex spp.) and creeping thistle (Cirsium arvense) in leys [22][23][24]. Such species pose a potential problem not only for ley performance but also for subsequent crops and can pose a serious threat to productivity of organic crops [23,25].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Weeds in Organic Fertility-Building Leys: Aspects of Species Richness and Weed Management

Döring

Storkey

Baddeley

et al. 2017

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract:Legume-based leys (perennial sod crops) are an important component of fertility management in organic rotations in many parts of Europe. Despite their importance, however, relatively little is known about how these leys affect weed communities or how the specific composition of leys may contribute to weed management. To determine whether the choice of plant species in the ley affects weeds, we conducted replicated field trials at six locations in the UK over 24 months, measuring weed cover and biomass in plots sown with monocultures of 12 legume and 4 grass species, and in plots sown with a mixture of 10 legume species and 4 grass species. Additionally, we monitored weed communities in leys on 21 organic farms across the UK either sown with a mixture of the project species or the farmers' own species mix. In total, 63 weed species were found on the farms, with the annuals Stellaria media, Sonchus arvensis, and Veronica persica being the most frequent species in the first year after establishment of the ley, while Stellaria media and the two perennials Ranunculus repens and Taraxacum officinale dominated the weed spectrum in the second year. Our study shows that organic leys constitute an important element of farm biodiversity. In both replicated and on-farm trials, weed cover and species richness were significantly lower in the second year than in the first, owing to lower presence of annual weeds in year two. In monocultures, meadow pea (Lathyrus pratensis) was a poor competitor against weeds, and a significant increase in the proportion of weed biomass was observed over time, due to poor recovery of meadow pea after mowing. For red clover (Trifolium pratense), we observed the lowest proportion of weed biomass in total biomass among the tested legume species. Crop biomass and weed biomass were negatively correlated across species. Residuals from the linear regression between crop biomass and weed biomass indicated that at similar levels of crop biomass, grasses had lower weed levels than legumes. We conclude that choice of crop species is an important tool for weed management in leys.

show abstract

Direct control of perennial weeds between crops – Implications for organic farming

Cited by 45 publications

References 25 publications

Incompatibility between fertility building measures and the management of perennial weeds in organic cropping systems

Incompatibility between fertility building measures and the management of perennial weeds in organic cropping systems

Intensifying bare fallow strategies to control Elymus repens in organic soils

Weeds in Organic Fertility-Building Leys: Aspects of Species Richness and Weed Management

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About