Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-4rdpn Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-02T20:49:30.912Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Burning Nettle (Urtica urens) Germination and Seedbank Characteristics in Coastal California

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

Ran N. Lati ,
Shachar Shem-Tov  and
Steven A. Fennimore
Ran N. Lati*
Affiliation:
University of California, Davis, Department of Plant Sciences, 1636 East Alisal, Salinas, CA 93905
Shachar Shem-Tov
Affiliation:
University of California, Davis, Department of Plant Sciences, 1636 East Alisal, Salinas, CA 93905
Steven A. Fennimore
Affiliation:
University of California, Davis, Department of Plant Sciences, 1636 East Alisal, Salinas, CA 93905
*
Corresponding author's E-mail: [email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Burning nettle is a noxious weed that commonly infests coastal California vegetable fields. Weed control programs for lettuce and fresh spinach grown in this area do not adequately control burning nettle, and escaped weeds that mature are highly problematic during hand weeding and harvesting. Information on the biology and ecology of burning nettle is limited, and work was conducted to develop information about this weed. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the effect of temperature on burning nettle germination and to determine its base temperature value, to characterize the germination pattern of this weed and seedbanks under local California coastal conditions, and to estimate the optimal timing for burning nettle removal by herbicides and physical methods. The upper optimal temperature for burning nettle germination was 22.8 C, but there was no difference in the final germination percentage between 4 and 22.8 C. The base temperature was determined to be 3 6 0.2 C, and this information allowed the development of temperature-based optimal control timing models. In the field, burning nettle emerged throughout the year without any seasonal pattern, and germinable seeds were also found in the seedbank throughout the year. Burning nettle was able to complete a growth cycle throughout the year in coastal California. Burning nettle has a short growth cycle that allows it to set viable seeds within 466 6 13 growing degree days (GDD), and this timing is critical for burning nettle removal by herbicides, cultivation, or hand weeding. The optimal timing for phenmedipham application at 180 g ai ha–1 was estimated to be 205 GDD. The germination and seedbank field studies indicate why burning nettle is so well adapted to the mild climate of coastal California. However, results presented here suggest strategies to reduce the burning nettle seedbank, improve its control, and allow more efficient lettuce and fresh spinach production.

Keywords

Phenmediphamburning nettle, Urtica urens L., lettuce, Lactuca sativa L. var., spinach, Spinacia oleracea L. # SPQOLBurning nettle germinationburning nettle seedbankfresh market spinachgrowing degree dayslettucephenmediphamtemperature
Type
Weed Biology and Ecology
Information
Weed Science , Volume 64 , Issue 4 , December 2016 , pp. 664 - 672
Copyright
Copyright © 2016 by the Weed Science Society of America 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Footnotes

Associate Editor for this paper: Hilary Sandler, University of Massachusetts.

References

Literature Cited

Abu-Irmaileh, BE (1991) Weed control in squash and tomato fields by soil solarization in the Jordan valley Weed Res 31:125–133 Google Scholar
Andreasen, C, Skovgaard, IM (2009) Crop and soil factors of importance for the distribution of plant species on arable fields in Denmark Agric Ecosyst Environ 133:61–67 Google Scholar
Anonymous (2015a) Prefar label. http://www.gowanco.com/Document.aspx?id=1349. Accessed May 9, 2015Google Scholar
Anonymous (2015b) Spin-Aid H specimen label. http://www.kellysolutions.com/erenewals/documentsubmit/KellyData%5CAK%5Cpesticide%5CProduct%20Label%5C264%5C264-616%5C264-616_SPIN_AID_HERBICIDE_8_16_2010_2_22_16_PM.pdf. Accessed May 9, 2015Google Scholar
Battista, M (1998) Predicting weeds in time and space from seedbank and seedling measurements. M.S. thesis. Davis: University of California, Davis. Pp 37–38 Google Scholar
Boot, R, Raynal, DJ, Grime, JP (1986) A comparative study of the influence of drought stress on flowering in Urtica dioica and U. urens J Ecol 74:485–495 Google Scholar
Buhler, DD, Hoffman, ML (1999) Andersen's Guide to Practical Methods of Propagating Weeds and Other Plants. Lawrence, KS: Weed Science Society of America 248 pGoogle Scholar
[CIMIS] California Irrigation Management Information System (2015) California Weather Database: Set Dates and Variables. http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/calludt.cgi/WXSTATIONDATA?STN=SALINAS.C. Accessed May 7, 2015Google Scholar
Daugovish, O, Fennimore, SA, Smith, RF (2007) Herbicide evaluation for fresh market celery Weed Technol 21:719–723 Google Scholar
Egley, HG, Williams, RD (1991) Emergence periodicity of six summer annual weed species Weed Sci 39:595–600 Google Scholar
Fennimore, SA, Doohan, DJ (2008) The challenges of specialty crop weed control, future directions Weed Technol 22:364–372 Google Scholar
Fennimore, SA, Smith, RF, Tourte, L, LeStrange, M, Rachuy, JS (2014) Evaluation and economics of a rotating cultivator in bok choy, celery, lettuce and radicchio Weed Technol 28:176–188 Google Scholar
Fitter, AH, Fitter, RSR, Harris, IB, Williamson, MH (1995) Relationships between first flowering date and temperature in the flora of a locality in central England Funct Ecol 9:55–60 Google Scholar
Forcella, F, Wilson, GR, Renner, KA, Dekker, J, Harvey, RG, Alm, DA, Buhler, DD, Cardina, J (1992) Weed seed banks of the U.S. corn belt: magnitude, variation, emergence, and application. Weed Sci 40:636–644 Google Scholar
Ghersa, CM, Benech-Arnold, RL, Satorre, EH, Martínez-Ghersa, MA (2000) Advances in weed management strategies Field Crops Res 67:97–104 Google Scholar
Greene, WH (2003) Econometric Analysis. 5th edn. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall Google Scholar
Hanzlik, K, Gerowitt, B (2011) The importance of climate, site and management on weed vegetation in oilseed rape in Germany Agric Ecosyst Environ 141:323–331 Google Scholar
Lati, RN, Beiquan, M, Rachuy, JS, Fennimore, SA (2016) Evaluation of cycloate followed by two-leaf stage phenmedipham application in fresh market spinach Weed Technol 30:464–471 Google Scholar
Lati, RN, Rachuy, JS, Fennimore, SA (2015) Weed management in fresh market spinach (Spinacia oleracea) with phenmedipham and cycloate Weed Technol 29:101–107 Google Scholar
Lauer, E (1953) Über die Keimtemperatur von Ackerunkräutern und deren Einfluss auf die Zusammensetzung von Unkrautgesellschaften Flora (Jena) 140:551–595 Google Scholar
Malone, CR (1967) A rapid method for enumeration of viable seeds in the soil Weeds 15:381–382 Google Scholar
McMaster, GS, Wilhelm, WW (1997) Growing degree-days: one equation, two interpretations Agric For Meteorol 87:291–300 Google Scholar
Merilä, J, Hendry, AP (2014) Climate change, adaptation, and phenotypic plasticity: the problem and the evidence Evol Appl 7:1–14 Google Scholar
Milberg, P, Andersson, L (1998) Does cold stratification level out differences in seed germinability between populations? Plant Ecol 134:225–234 Google Scholar
Motulsky, H, Christopoulos, A (2004) Fitting Models to Biological Data Using Linear and Nonlinear Regression. A Practical Guide to Curve Fitting. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. 352 pGoogle Scholar
Odero, DC, Wright, AL (2013) Phosphorus application influences the critical period of weed control in lettuce Weed Sci 61:410–414 Google Scholar
Poggio, SL (2005) Structure of weed communities occurring in monoculture and intercropping of field pea and barley Agric Ecosyst Environ 109:48–58 Google Scholar
Radosovich, SJ, Holt, J, Ghersa, C (1997) Weed ecology. 2nd edn. Implication for Management. New York: J. Wiley. 589 pGoogle Scholar
Roberts, HA, Feast, PM (1973) Emergence and longevity of seeds of annual weeds in cultivated and undisturbed soil J Appl Ecol 10:133–143 Google Scholar
Ryder, EJ (1999) Crop Production Science in Horticulture 9. Lettuce, Endive and Chicory. Wallingford, UK: CABI Publishing. Pp 79–89 Google Scholar
Samtani, JB, Rachuy, JS, Mou, B, Fennimore, SA (2014) Evaluation of tribenuron-methyl on sulfonylurea-resistant lettuce germplasm Weed Technol 18:510–517 Google Scholar
Shem-Tov, S, Fennimore, SA (2003) Seasonal changes in annual bluegrass (Poa annua L.) germinability and emergence Weed Sci 51:690–695 Google Scholar
Slaughter, DC, Giles, DK, Fennimore, SA, Smith, RF (2008) Multispectral machine vision identification of lettuce and weed seedlings for automated weed control Weed Technol 22:378–384 Google Scholar
Smith, R, Cahn, M, Daugovish, O, Koike, S, Natwick, E, Smith, H, Subbarao, K, Takele, E, Turini, T (2011) Leaf lettuce Production in California. http://anrcatalog.ucdavis.edu/pdf/7216.pdf. Accessed April 1, 2015Google Scholar
Smith, RF, LeStrange, M, Fennimore, SA (2013) Integrated Weed Control in Spinach. Davis, CA: University of California Pest Management Guidelines. http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/selectnewpest.spinach.html. Accessed April 12, 2016Google Scholar
Takele, E (2013) Spinach Production: Sample Costs and Profitability Analysis. http://anrcatalog.ucdavis.edu/pdf/8032.pdf. Accessed July 18, 2015Google Scholar
Trudgill, DL, Honek, A, Li, D, Van Staalen, MN (2005) Thermal time—concepts and utility Ann Appl Biol 146:1–14 Google Scholar
[UCIPM] University of California Integrated Pest Management (2015) Burning nettle (Urtica urens). http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/WEEDS/burning_nettle.html. Accessed July 9, 2015Google Scholar
Van Klinken, RD, Flack, L (2005) Wet heat as a mechanism for dormancy release and germination of seeds with physical dormancy Weed Sci 53:663–669 Google Scholar
[WRCC] Western Regional Climate Center (2009) Salinas Municipal Airport Weather July 1996 to December 2008. http://www.wrcc.dri.edu/summary/sns.ca.html. Accessed December 7, 2015Google Scholar