Category Archives: Uncategorized

Integrated Weed Management

Posted on by
Reply

Integrated Weed Management (IWM) is a holistic approach that sustainably reduces weed populations on agricultural land. It combines various methods, such as mechanical, biological, and chemical weed control, tailored to the specific needs of a farm. The goal is to make weed control more efficient and environmentally friendly in the long term by utilizing many available methods together—this allows the weaknesses or gaps of individual approaches to be overcome. Although the initial implementation might require more effort, the work needed for weed control can be sustainably and significantly reduced over time.

(c) Swen Follak

A key component of this approach is the use of indirect management methods that prevent weeds from emerging in the first place. Crop rotation is a great example, as it disrupts weed populations by altering the growing conditions. By using a variety of such indirect methods, the remaining weeds can be targeted with specific herbicides.

A well-known example of the benefits of IWM is the study by Harker and O’Donovan (2013), which shows that integrated weed management can reduce herbicide dependency while maintaining stable yields.

Harker, K. N., & O’Donovan, J. T. (2013). Recent advances in weed management in North American conventional and organic cropping systems. *Canadian Journal of Plant Science*, 93(5), 901-910. Link to summary: https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/10.4141/cjps2013-088.

Introducing AgriWeedClim

Posted on by

Agricultural habitats cover nearly half of the EU-27 and make up the backbone of many European landscapes. They are essential for the provision of food and fiber and provide cultural/recreational ecosystem services but also vital functions for biodiversity. Over the last century agriculture has been influenced by climate change, land use change, increasing land use intensity, changes in market demands and economic systems. This has had pronounced effects on its unique plant species and communities. While an overall biodiversity loss seems certain, weeds still cause substantial damage to crops, livestock and/or humans. With species introductions showing no signs of stopping and climate change accelerating in the 21st century, some newly introduced species are set to emerge as new weeds. These emerging weeds are the focus of AgriWeedClim and its research questions:

  1. How has the weed flora in Central Europe changed during the past decades?
  2. Which weed species have declined, which weed species have expanded or newly emerged? Which factors have driven these changes?
  3. Which weeds will likely emerge as important weed species in the future?
  4. What will the possible future trajectories of emerging weeds under different land-use and climate change scenarios be?
  5. What will be the likely agricultural impacts of future spread of emerging weeds?
  6. Which regions will be hotspots of emerging weeds under different land-use and climate change scenarios?
  7. Which management options are available to reduce future spread and impacts of emerging weeds?