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| Publication Type:
| Report |
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| Content Type: | Abstract or Summary only |
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| Author(s): | Shilling, D. G. |
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| Author Affiliation: | Department of Agronomy, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611 |
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| Title: | Use of cover crops for weed control |
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| Section: | Papers and Abstracts Presented
Other records with the "Papers and Abstracts Presented" Section
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| Meeting Info.: | 49th Annual Meeting, Charlotte, NC, January 15-17, 1996 |
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| Source: | Southern Weed Science Society Proceedings. Vol. 49, 1996, p. 74-75. |
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| Publishing Information: | Champaign, IL: Southern Weed Science Society. |
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| # of Pages: | 2 |
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| Abstract/Contents: | "No-till agronomic and horticultural productions systems that utilize cover crops were developed in the 1950's and 60's; however, many cover crop systems date to antiquity. There are several approaches to using cover crops for weed management. In a broad sense, growing any desirable plant species is using a cover crop for weed control because the crop itself is in essence a cover. Any weed scientist would say that growing a healthy crop is essential to proper weed management. This is because the crop effectively becomes a cover and suppresses weeds late-season after the herbicide has dissipated. Several systems of cover crops are used in no-till row-crop production. Residues from the preceding crop, double cropping or a dedicated cover crop (usually a small grain) either plowed under as a green manure or desiccated prior to no-till planting the crop, can serve as cover crops that impact weeds and management practices. When maintained properly, turf (lawns, roadsides and pastures) is an effective cover crop that suppresses weed growth. For centuries, living mulches which are effective cover crops have been used in row middles of orchards for weed management. Thus cover crops have been and will probably continue to be used in many different situations for weed management. Many cover crops have been reported in hundreds and perhaps thousands of aricles to impact weeds and management practices. Although there is not a unified opinion as to whether cover crops increase or decrease weed populations, there is no debating the fact that weeds are affected. Generally, cover crop systems do cause weed population shifts. If the system is maintained long-term, then the weed spectrum changes from annual to a perennial complex due to the lack of soil disturbance. This change in weed population dynamics requires a change in weed management practices. Ecologically, the use of a cover crop system impacts weeds through physical and chemical mechanisms. Physically, the presence of the mulch and the lack of soil disturbance influences weed germination and growth by impediment, exclusion of light, alteration of temperature and gases and seed postion in the soil profile. There is strong evidence that some cover crops allelopathically affect weeds. Cover crop can also impact weed management indirectly by interacting with control methoods. The lack of cultivation in a no-till system will have a major impact on weed control. As discussed previously, this is because tillage not only kills weeds at the time of the operation, but stimulates future weed seed germination. A system using a cover crop will also influence herbicide efficacy. Cover crops can absorb herbicides reducing the amount available for weed control. The amount of erosion and leaching can also be influenced by cover crops and consequently herbicide fate, availability and efficacy. The impact of cover crops on weeds and management practices has been extensively documented along with plausible explanations as to why these effects have been observed. Based on available information, cover crops can be used beneficially to manage weeds. However, in order to fully exploit this technology for effective weed management a greater understanding of how edaphic, environmental, ecological and managerial factors interact with cover crops will be essential." |
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| Language: | English |
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| References: | 0 |
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| Note: | This item is an abstract only! |
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| ASA/CSSA/SSSA Citation (Crop Science-Like - may be incomplete):
Shilling, D. G. 1996. Use of cover crops for weed control. South. Weed Sci. Soc. Proc. 49:p. 74-75. |
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MSU catalog number: SB 611 .S6 |
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