Weeds are a significant problem in crop production and their management in modern agriculture is crucial to avoid yield losses and ensure food security. Intensive agricultural practices, changing climate, and natural disasters affect weed dynamics and that requires a change in weed management protocols. The existing manual control options are no longer viable because of labor shortages; chemical control options are limited by ecodegradation, health hazards, and development of herbicide resistance in weeds. We are therefore reviewing some potential nonconventional weed management strategies for modern agriculture that are viable, feasible, and efficient. Improvement in tillage regimes has long been identified as an impressive weed-control measure. Harvest weed seed control and seed predation have been shown as potential tools for reducing weed emergence and seed bank reserves. Development in the field of allelopathy for weed management has led to new techniques for weed control. The remarkable role of biotechnological advancements in developing herbicide-resistant crops, bioherbicides, and harnessing the allelopathic potential of crops is also worth mentioning in a modern weed management program. Thermal weed management has also been observed as a useful technique, especially under conservation agriculture systems. Last, precision weed management has been elaborated with sufficient details. The role of remote sensing, modeling, and robotics as an integral part of precision weed management has been highlighted in a realistic manner. All these strategies are viable for today's agriculture; however, site-specific selection and the use of right combinations will be the key to success. No single strategy is perfect, and therefore an integrated approach may provide better results. Future research is needed to explore the potential of these strategies and to optimize them on technological and cultural bases. The adoption of such methods may improve the efficiency of cropping systems under sustainable and conservation practices.

Weed management is a challenge in all agroecosystems. Given the negative consequences associated with herbicide-based weed management, it is important to consider integrated weed management options with emphasis on strategies such as biological control. Postdispersal weed seed predation by granivorous and omnivorous carabid beetles results in substantial natural suppression of weed populations. Although the role of ground beetles as “generalist predators” in various agroecosystems is known, their contribution to weed management is not well recognized. In this context, this review presents an account of carabids and their granivorous nature, the importance of a seed diet in the life histories of different carabid groups, factors affecting granivory, and their potential role in weed seed management. Below, we discuss the interrelationships among various factors influencing weed seed consumption by carabids, its consequences for weed management, and the need for future research.

Smallflower umbrella sedge is a problematic weed in direct-seeded rice in the midsouthern United States. It recently has evolved resistance to the acetolactate synthase (ALS) –inhibiting herbicide halosulfuron in Arkansas rice. Studies were conducted (1) to determine if the resistant biotype is cross resistant to other ALS-inhibiting herbicides, (2) to evaluate alternative herbicide control options, and (3) to determine the mechanism of resistance. Whole-plant bioassay revealed that halosulfuron-resistant plants were not controlled by bispyribac–sodium, imazamox, and penoxsulam at the labeled field rate of each herbicide. The level of resistance to these herbicides, based on the lethal dose needed to kill 50% of plants (LD50) was ≥ 15-fold compared to a susceptible biotype. Both biotypes were controlled >96% with bentazon and propanil and ≤ 23% with quinclorac, thiobencarb, and 2,4-D. Hence, effective control measures exist; albeit, the number of herbicide options appear limited. Based on in vitro ALS enzyme assays, altered target site is the mechanism of resistance to halosulfuron and imazamox. Massively parallel sequencing with the use of the Illumina HiSeq detected an amino acid substitution of Pro197-to-His in the resistant biotype that is consistent with ALS-inhibiting herbicide resistance in other weed species.

Overuse of acetolactate synthase (ALS)–inhibiting herbicides in rice has led to the evolution of halosulfuron-resistant rice flatsedge in Arkansas and Mississippi. Resistant accessions were cross-resistant to labeled field rates of ALS-inhibiting herbicides from four different families, in comparison to a susceptible (SUS) biotype. Resistance index of Arkansas and Mississippi accessions based on an R/S ratio of the lethal dose required for 50% plant mortality (LD50) to bispyribac-sodium, halosulfuron, imazamox, and penoxsulam was ≥ 21-fold. Control of Arkansas, Mississippi, and SUS accessions with labeled field rates of 2,4-D, bentazon, and propanil was ≥ 93%. An enzyme assay revealed that an R/S ratio for 50% inhibition (I50) of ALS for halosulfuron was 2,600 and 200 in Arkansas and Mississippi, respectively. Malathion studies did not reveal enhanced herbicide metabolism in resistant plants. The ALS enzyme assay and cross-resistance studies point toward altered a target site as the potential mechanism of resistance. Trp574–Leu amino acid substitution within the ALS gene was found in both Arkansas and Mississippi rice flatsedge accessions using the Illumina HiSeq platform, which corresponds to the mechanism of resistance found in many weed species. Field-rate applications of 2,4-D, bentazon, and propanil can be used to control these ALS-resistant rice flatsedge accessions.

When herbicides are sprayed in the field, a proportion of the herbicide falls onto leaves and soil surfaces, where it can be exposed to sunlight, generating photoproducts that can be more toxic and/or persistent than the parent substance and affect human health and the environment. The aim of this study was to identify the photoproducts of the herbicide alloxydim in leaf and soil model systems and to perform phytotoxicity studies. Alloxydim was rapidly photodegraded in systems simulating plant cuticles and soil surfaces, with half-lives ranging from 1 to 30 min. The main by-product, identified by LC-Qtof-MS as deallyoxylated alloxydim, was more stable than the active substance. The EC50 values on root lengths of different varieties of wheat plants and one grass weed ranged from 0.38 to 0.50 mg L−1 for alloxydim. In contrast, the EC50 values for deallyoxylated alloxydim ranged from 94 to 600 mg L−1 in the same species and in crops where the herbicide was applied. Special attention should be given to alloxydim degradation products because of the rapid degradation of this herbicide. Comparative bioassay studies between alloxydim and its photostable by-product showed that the by-product presents low phytotoxicity, whereas alloxydim can cause injury to neighboring and succeeding cereal crops.

The annual global economic loss caused by weeds has been estimated at more than $100 billion U.S. dollars (Appleby et al. 2000). Additionally, worldwide annual herbicide sales are in the range of U.S. $25 billion (Agrow 2003). In light of these large dollar figures, it becomes clear that a greater understanding of crop—weed interactions is essential in order to develop cost-effective and sustainable weed management practices.

Acetolactate synthase–- (ALS-) inhibiting herbicides are frequently used to control annual bluegrass in managed turfgrass systems. Recently, the number of annual bluegrass populations resistant to these herbicides has increased on golf courses. Previous research involving annual bluegrass resistance to ALS inhibitors has included elucidating the mechanism of resistance and in vivo response of ALS to ALS-inhibiting herbicides. The purpose of this research was to generate baseline information on enzymatic parameters of resistant (R) and susceptible (S) annual bluegrass biotypes and further distinguish these biotypes by comparing vegetative growth and reproductive characteristics. The R biotype contained a mutation in the ALS gene resulting in a Trp574 to Leu amino acid substitution. Compared to the S biotype, the R biotype exhibited a 27- and 10-fold resistance to trifloxysulfuron at the whole-plant level and under in vitro conditions, respectively. No significant differences were observed in substrate concentration at one-half maximum rate of enzyme activity (pyruvate) or extractable ALS activity between biotypes, but the maximum rate of enzyme activity was higher for the R biotype. The feedback inhibition of ALS activity by the branched-chain amino acids was higher for the R biotype than the S biotype, with leucine, valine, and isoleucine inhibiting ALS activity 20, 6, and 4% more in the R biotype, respectively. The R biotype produced more inflorescences and seeds per plant in comparison with the S biotype, but relative growth rates between biotypes were similar at all harvest intervals. Our research provides baseline information regarding ALS enzyme response, vegetative growth, and reproductive characteristics of annual bluegrass biotypes resistant and susceptible to ALS-inhibiting herbicides.

Waterhemp is an increasingly problematic weed in the U.S. Midwest, having now evolved resistances to herbicides from six different site-of-action groups. Glyphosate-resistant waterhemp in the Midwest is especially concerning given the economic importance of glyphosate in corn and soybean production. Amplification of the target-site gene, 5-enolpyruvylshikimate-3-phosphate synthase (EPSPS) was found to be the mechanism of glyphosate resistance in Palmer amaranth, a species closely related to waterhemp. Here, the relationship between glyphosate resistance and EPSPS gene amplification in waterhemp was investigated. Glyphosate dose response studies were performed at field sites with glyphosate-resistant waterhemp in Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Missouri, and Nebraska, and relative EPSPS copy number of survivors was determined via quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). Waterhemp control increased with increasing glyphosate rate at all locations, but no population was completely controlled even at the highest rate (3,360 g ae ha−1). EPSPS gene amplification was present in plants from four of five locations (Illinois, Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska) and the proportion of plants with elevated copy number was generally higher in survivors from glyphosate-treated plots than in plants from the untreated control plots. Copy number magnitude varied by site, but an overall trend of increasing copy number with increasing rate was observed in populations with gene amplification, suggesting that waterhemp plants with more EPSPS copies are more resistant. Survivors from the Kentucky population did not have elevated EPSPS copy number. Instead, resistance in this population was attributed to the EPSPS Pro106Ser mutation. Results herein show a quantitative relationship between glyphosate resistance and EPSPS gene amplification in some waterhemp populations, while highlighting that other mechanisms also confer glyphosate resistance in waterhemp.

Herbicide resistance is an exceptional marker to quantify gene flow. Quantification of pollen-, seed-, and vegetative propagule-mediated gene flow provides key weed biology information. Pollen-mediated gene flow influences the genetic variance within a population, the frequency of multiple or polygenic herbicide resistance, and the evolutionary dynamics of a species. Seed-mediated gene flow predominates in self-pollinating species. Gene flow quantification may enable the estimation of herbicide resistance epicenter, the comparison of the relative importance of gene flow pathways, and prediction of future distribution of resistance traits. Gene flow studies using herbicide resistance also can provide insight into the rates and importance of hybridization.

The rapid evolution and spread of glyphosate-resistant (GR) kochia in the Northern Great Plains is an increasing threat to GR cropping systems and conservation tillage practices common in this region. GR kochia accessions with 4.6- to 11-fold levels of resistance to glyphosate have recently been reported in Montana. Those GR kochia accessions were also suspected to be resistant to acetolactate synthase (ALS) inhibitors, i.e., multiple herbicide-resistant (MHR) kochia. In this research, the level of resistance to the ALS-inhibitor herbicides (sulfonylureas) and the molecular mechanisms conferring resistance to glyphosate and ALS-inhibitor herbicides in MHR kochia was investigated. On the basis of whole-plant dose–response assays, MHR kochia accessions (GIL01, JOP01, and CHES01) were 9.3- to 30-fold more resistant to premixed thifensulfuron methyl + tribenuron methyl + metsulfuron methyl than the susceptible (SUS) accession. In an in vivo leaf-disk shikimate assay, MHR plants accumulated less shikimate than the SUS plants at a discriminate dose of 100 μM glyphosate. Sequencing of the conserved region of EPSPS revealed no target-site mutation at Thr102 or Pro106 residue. MHR kochia accessions had increased relative EPSPS gene copies (~ 4 to 10) compared with the SUS accession (single copy). Furthermore, MHR kochia accumulated higher EPSPS protein compared with the SUS plants. Resistance to the ALS-inhibitor herbicides was conferred by Pro197 amino acid substitution (proline to glutamine). EPSPS gene amplification and a single target-site mutation at Pro197 in ALS gene confer resistance to glyphosate and ALS-inhibitor herbicides, respectively, in MHR kochia accessions from Montana. This is the first confirmation of occurrence of MHR kochia in Montana.

New trait technology incorporating 2,4-D resistance in soybean is dependent upon the ability of the plant to metabolize 2,4-D by the aryloxyalkanoate dioxygenase-12 protein (AAD-12). Our objectives were to determine AAD-12 expression during the daytime, throughout the leaf canopy, and before and after 2,4-D treatment for the events DAS-68416-4 and DAS-21606-3. Field experiments were conducted near Wanatah, IN in 2009 and Fowler, IN in 2009, 2010, and 2011. During the daytime, total AAD-12 expression was lowest between 12:30 and 15:30, averaging 161 ng cm−2, as compared to an average of 245 ng cm−2 in the morning and 243 ng cm−2 in the evening. The youngest fully emerged trifoliate in the DAS-68416-4 event had the highest AAD-12 expression, with means ranging from 369 to 390 ng cm−2, while the older leaves maintained a lower level of expression, 171 to 211 ng cm−2. The youngest leaves of event DAS-21606-3 had the highest level of AAD-12 expression (205 to 225 ng cm−2), while the level of AAD-12 was lower in older leaves (71 to 149 ng cm−2). In general, 2,4-D treatments did not reduce AAD-12 expression at 3, 7, 14, and 21 days after treatment; however, in a few instances AAD-12 expression was increased or decreased by 8 to 11% after 2,4-D treatment. Expression of AAD-12 was between 152 to 390 ng cm−2 for DAS-68416-4 and from 71 to 244 ng cm−2 for DAS-21606-3.

Greenhouse studies were conducted to determine the influence of spray-solution pH, adjuvant, light intensity, temperature, and glyphosate on the efficacy of saflufenacil on horseweed. Control of glyphosate-resistant horseweed from saflufenacil alone was greatest with a spray-solution pH of 5, compared with pH 7 or 9. However, when glyphosate was added to saflufenacil, similar GR50 values were measured with spray solutions adjusted to pH 5 and 9, and horseweed control at pH 9 was 38% greater than at pH 7. The efficacy of saflufenacil on horseweed was 36% greater when crop oil concentrate was used as an adjuvant compared with nonionic surfactant, regardless of the addition of glyphosate or the sensitivity of the horseweed population to glyphosate (resistant vs. susceptible). The addition of glyphosate to low rates of saflufenacil increased control over saflufenacil applied alone on glyphosate-susceptible and -resistant horseweed. Saflufenacil activity was greater under low light intensity (300 μmol m−2 s−1) than high light intensity (1,000 μmol m−2 s−1). Although initial horseweed control was greater under high temperature (27 C) compared with low temperature (10 C), by 21 d after treatment horseweed dry weight was similar from saflufenacil applied under high and low temperatures.

Annual bluegrass is a problematic weed of Kentucky bluegrass turf that can be selectively controlled with POST applications of primisulfuron-methyl. The objective of this research was to evaluate physiological behavior of primisulfuron-methyl attributed to selectivity in these species. In application placement experiments, annual bluegrass shoot weight reductions from the nontreated from high to low were treatments including: foliar + soil ≥ soil only ≥ foliar. Annual bluegrass averaged 33 and 52% shoot weight reductions from the nontreated after 4 wk from primisulfuron-methyl at 40 and 80 g ha−1, respectively. Kentucky bluegrass shoot weight was not reduced from the nontreated, and application placements were similar. From five harvests ranging 1 to 168 h after treatment (HAT), annual and Kentucky bluegrass absorbed up to 25 and 32% of foliar applied 14C-primisulfuron-methyl, respectively. Both grasses distributed 15% of foliar absorbed 14C to nontreated shoots with minimal translocation (≤ 2%) to roots after 168 h. Annual bluegrass translocated 2 times more root-absorbed 14C to shoots than Kentucky bluegrass at 24, 72, and 168 HAT. From foliar uptake, the time required for annual and Kentucky bluegrass to degrade 50% of the absorbed herbicide to the major metabolite detected (Rf 0.1) measured > 168 and 93 h, respectively. In root metabolism experiments, annual bluegrass had ≈ 3 times and 2 times more primisulfuron acid in roots and shoots, respectively, than Kentucky bluegrass at 24, 72, and 168 HAT. The isolated acetolactate synthase (ALS) enzymes from the two grasses were equally susceptible to inhibition by primisulfuron-methyl. Overall, selectivity of primisulfuron-methyl for annual bluegrass control in Kentucky bluegrass is attributed to differential translocation and metabolism between species.

Herbicides inhibit biochemical and physiological processes or both with lethal consequences. The target sites of these small molecules are usually enzymes involved in primary metabolic pathways or proteins carrying out essential physiological functions. Herbicides tend to be highly specific for their respective target sites and have served as tools to study these physiological and biochemical processes in plants (Dayan et al. 2010b).

Invasive watermilfoils, specifically Eurasian watermilfoil and the interspecific hybrid of Eurasian watermilfoil × northern watermilfoil, continue to be problematic for water resource managers. Herbicides are often used to control these nuisance weeds and have been historically successful in controlling Eurasian watermilfoil. A population of hybrid watermilfoil from Townline Lake in Michigan has shown increased tolerance to the herbicide fluridone. The objective of this work is to determine if cross- and multiple tolerance have also developed in this population. Eurasian watermilfoil plants collected from multiple sites and plants from Townline Lake were treated with 0, 5, 10, 20, 40, or 80 µg L−1 of fluridone, norflurazon, or topramezone. Fluridone and norflurazon inhibit phytoene desaturase, whereas topramezone is a 4-hydroxyphenylpyruvate dioxygenase-inhibiting herbicide. Chlorophyll fluorescence (Fv/Fm) and pigment content was measured at 10 d after treatment. Townline Lake plants responded differently from susceptible plants when treated with fluridone, norflurazon, and topramezone at 40 µg L−1. These results indicate that the Townline population of hybrid watermilfoil has inherent tolerance to multiple herbicide modes of action. These results are especially significant as topramezone has recently been labeled for aquatic use. Screening of additional herbicides to determine potential herbicide tolerance of the Townline Lake population is recommended.

A waterhemp population (MCR) previously characterized as resistant to 4-hydroxyphenylpyruvate dioxygenase and photosystem II inhibitors demonstrated both moderate and high levels of resistance to acetolactate synthase (ALS) inhibitors. Plants from the MCR population exhibiting high resistance to ALS inhibitors contained the commonly found Trp574Leu ALS amino acid substitution, whereas plants with only moderate resistance did not have this substitution. A subpopulation (JG11) was derived from the MCR population in which the moderate-resistance trait was isolated from the Trp574Leu mutation. Results from DNA sequencing and ALS enzyme assays demonstrated that resistance to ALS inhibitors in the JG11 population was not due to an altered site of action. This nontarget-site ALS-inhibitor resistance was characterized with whole-plant dose–response experiments using herbicides from each of the five commercialized families of ALS-inhibiting herbicides. Resistance ratios ranging from 3 to 90 were obtained from the seven herbicides evaluated. Nontarget-site resistance to ALS has been rarely documented in eudicot weeds, and adds to the growing list of resistance traits evolved in waterhemp.

Reports of kochia control failure with glyphosate in western Kansas increased dramatically in the years following confirmed presence of glyphosate-resistant (GR) populations in 2007. In this study, progeny from 8 of 16 geographically dispersed kochia populations in western Kansas (seed collected in 2010) were confirmed to be resistant to glyphosate by conducting whole-plant dose-response (in greenhouse and/or outdoor environments) and shikimate-accumulation assays. Additionally, the relationship between 5-enolpyruvylshikimate-3-phosphate synthase (EPSPS) gene copy number and glyphosate resistance levels was investigated. A known glyphosate-susceptible (GS) kochia population from Ellis County, Kansas was used for comparison in all studies. Based on the herbicide rate that caused 50% reduction in biomass compared to untreated control (GR50) values, the 8 GR kochia populations were 4 to 11 times more resistant to glyphosate compared to the GS population. The GR50 values of kochia populations were 1.58 to 1.85 times higher under an outdoor environment compared to when grown in the greenhouse. Glyphosate-treated leaf discs of the GS kochia plants accumulated consistently higher amounts of shikimate than those of the GR plants. Additionally, the GR plants with higher levels of resistance to glyphosate had higher EPSPS : acetolactate synthase (ALS) relative gene copy number compared to those with low levels of resistance.

Overreliance on tribenuron has resulted in resistance evolution in water starwort. This study investigates the resistance mechanisms to tribenuron in water starwort populations from China. The cytochrome P450 monooxygenase (P450) inhibitor malathion increased tribenuron sensitivity in all populations. The decrease in the amount of herbicide dose that causes 50% growth reduction (GR50) for the sensitive (S) population JS24 and the resistant (R) populations JS16 and JS17 were 2.3-, 2.5-, and 4.1-fold, respectively. However, the GR50 values for the R populations were still much higher than those of the S population. This observation indicates that P450-mediated enhanced metabolism is one mechanism for resistance in water starwort. The glutathione-S-transferase (GST) activity could be induced by tribenuron for all tested populations. In particular, the GST activity of JS16 is inherently greater and is more rapidly induced than that of JS17 or JS24. Resistance attributed to mutant acetolactate synthase (ALS) alleles was identified by sequence analysis for each population. Pro197Ser substitution was detected in JS16 and JS17. Molecular markers were also developed to rapidly identify resistance as well as individuals carrying the specific Pro197Ser mutation in water starwort populations. The resistance patterns experiment revealed that the R populations exhibited different levels of resistance to pyrithiobac sodium salt, florasulam, pyroxsulam, and flucarbazone-Na; however, R populations were sensitive to imazethapyr, fluroxypyr-meptyl, 2,4-D butylate, isoproturon, and diflufenican. This study establishes that either one or at least two resistance mechanisms are involved in herbicide resistance in water starwort. Moreover, these mechanisms might contribute to the different levels of resistance to tribenuron among water starwort populations.