The control of weeds in cereals using an integrated approach.

Abstract

An integrated approach to weed management was studied using different cultivars of winter wheat, sowing densities and nitrogen rates. The cultivars were the traditional long-strawed Maris Huntsman and the more recent shorter-strawed variety, Mercia. The intensity of photosynthetically active radiation was highly correlated with crop height and nitrogen availability, Maris Huntsman being consistently taller than Mercia. Significant reductions in above-ground weed dry weight, weed density and species diversity were seen in the presence of Maris Huntsman and with increased nitrogen rate throughout the study. The suppressive effect of increased crop sowing rate was however, only observed at the final weed harvest. Individual species gave different levels of response to cultivar, sowing density and nitrogen. Maris Huntsman achieved greater overall yields and heavier thousand grain weights than Mercia, and the results suggest that an integrated approach may prove to be successful in the control of weeds without compromising crop quality.