Smooth scouringrush has invaded no-till production fields across the US Pacific Northwest. The ability of Equisetum species to take up and accumulate silica on the epidermis and in cell walls may affect herbicide uptake. The objectives of this study were to measure the silica concentration in smooth scouringrush stems over time, and to determine how time of application affects the efficacy of glyphosate for smooth scouringrush control, with and without the addition of an organosilicone surfactant (OSS). Field studies were conducted at three sites in eastern Washington from 2019 to 2021. Three herbicide treatments (no herbicide, glyphosate, and glyphosate + OSS) were applied at four application times (May, June, July, and August) in 2019 fallow. The silica content of smooth scouringrush stems increased over the course of the 2019 growing season at all three sites. In 2020, smooth scouringrush stem densities were reduced when the 2019 herbicide treatments were applied in late June (12% of no herbicide density) compared to late July (24%) or August (30%). Smooth scouringrush stem densities at all three sites, in both 2020 and 2021, were reduced in the glyphosate + OSS treatment compared to glyphosate alone. In 2021, 2 yr after herbicide application, there was no effect of application timing for the glyphosate treatment without OSS, but stem densities were reduced when glyphosate + OSS was applied in late June (1%) compared with applications in late July (26%) or late August (21%). It is not clear if the cause of reduced glyphosate efficacy with late July and late August applications is the result of increased silica content in smooth scouringrush stems over time. Maximum glyphosate efficacy on smooth scouringrush was achieved with an application in late June and with the addition of an OSS. Control of smooth scouringrush with glyphosate + OSS can be sustained for at least 2 yr after application.

Auxinic herbicides have been commonly used in production systems for broadleaf weed control for many years. One potential negative aspect to their use is their propensity to volatilize and move away from the treated area after application. This research examined three herbicide formulations and their relative amounts of vaporization following application under field conditions in Knoxville, TN, in 2017, 2018, and 2019. Herbicide treatments evaluated included 2,4-D choline, 2,4-D amine, and the diglycolamine (DGA) salt of dicamba. Ten field studies were conducted with major parameters including air sampler height (0.3 and 1.3 m) and applied surface condition (dry wheat stubble or green-plant vegetation). The relative volatility indicated by the study was that dicamba > 2,4-D choline = 2,4-D amine. Detected herbicide concentrations were numerically higher at the 0.3-m sampling height and in the green-plant surface condition. These results confirm that dicamba is more volatile than 2,4-D and that there was no difference in vapor emissions between the amine and choline salts of 2,4-D under field conditions.

A field experiment was conducted in 2019 and 2020 that included six site-years and four locations in Arkansas to determine the optimal sequence and timing of dicamba and glufosinate applications when applied alone, sequentially, or in combination to control Palmer amaranth by size: labeled (<10 cm height) and non-labeled (13 to 25 cm height). Single applications of dicamba, glufosinate, and dicamba plus glufosinate (not labeled) resulted in less than 80% Palmer amaranth control, regardless of weed size. The mixture of dicamba plus glufosinate was antagonistic for Palmer amaranth control and percent mortality. Sequential applications, averaged over all time intervals and herbicides, improved the percentage of Palmer amaranth control 11 to 17 percentage points over a single application, regardless of weed size at application 28 d after final application (DAFA). Palmer amaranth control with glufosinate followed by (fb) glufosinate and dicamba fb dicamba, pending weed size, were optimized at intervals of 7 d, and 14 to 21 d, respectively. Because single site of action (SOA) postemergence herbicide systems increase the likelihood of the development of resistant biotypes and are not a best management practice (BMP) in that regard; sequential applications involving both dicamba and glufosinate were more effective. Furthermore, the sequence of application mattered with a preference for applying dicamba first. Dicamba fb glufosinate at a 14-d interval was profit-maximizing and the only herbicide treatment that resulted in 100% weed control when size was <10 cm. For larger weed sizes, economic analysis revealed that dicamba fb dicamba performed better than dicamba fb glufosinate when no penalty was assigned for using a single SOA. This resulted in greater yield loss risk and soil weed seed bank in comparison to timelier weed control with the smaller weed size. Hence, timely weed control and two SOAs to control Palmer amaranth are recommended as BMPs that reduce producer risk.

Field experiments were conducted in 2020 and 2021 to determine the effectiveness of electrocution on several weeds commonly encountered in Missouri soybean production using an implement known as The Weed Zapper™. In the first study, the effectiveness of electrocution on waterhemp, cocklebur, giant and common ragweed, horseweed, giant and yellow foxtail, and barnyardgrass was determined. Electrocution was applied when plants reached average heights and/or growth stages of 30 cm, 60 cm, flowering, pollination, and seed set. Electrocution was applied once or twice, at two different tractor speeds. Electrocution was more effective at the later plant growth stages. Pearson correlation coefficients indicated that control of weed species was most related to plant height and amount of plant moisture at the time of electrocution. When plants contained seed at the time of electrocution, viability was reduced from 54% to 80% among the species evaluated. A second study determined the effect of electrocution on late-season waterhemp plants, and also soybean injury and yield. Electrocution timings took place throughout reproductive soybean growth stages. The control of waterhemp escapes within the soybean trial ranged from 51% to 97%. Yield of soybean electrocuted at the R4 and R6 growth stages was similar to that of the nontreated control, but soybean yield was reduced by 11% to 26% following electrocution at all other timings. However, the visual injury and yield loss observed in these experiments likely represents a worst-case scenario because growers who maintain a clear height differential between waterhemp and the soybean canopy would not need to maintain contact with the soybean canopy. Overall, results from these experiments indicate that electrocution as part of an integrated weed-management program could eliminate late-season herbicide-resistant weed escapes in soybean, and reduce the number and viability of weed seed that return to the soil seedbank.

Palmer amaranth is a common weed on levees in rice fields but has become increasingly problematic with the adoption of furrow-irrigated rice and lack of an established flood. Florpyrauxifen-benzyl previously has been found effective for controlling Palmer amaranth in rice, but the efficacy of low rates of florpyrauxifen-benzyl and the effect of Palmer amaranth size on controlling it is unknown. The objective of this research was to determine the level of Palmer amaranth control expected with single and sequential applications of florpyrauxifen-benzyl at varying weed heights. The first study was conducted near Marianna, AR, in 2019 and 2020, to determine the effect of florpyrauxifen-benzyl rate on control of <10 cm (labeled size) and 28- to 32-cm-tall (larger-than-labeled size) Palmer amaranth. The second experiment was conducted in 2020 at two locations in Arkansas to compare single applications of florpyrauxifen-benzyl at low rates to sequential applications at the same rates with a 14-d interval on 20- and 40-cm-tall Palmer amaranth. Results revealed that florpyrauxifen-benzyl at 15 g ae ha−1 was as effective as 30 g ae ha−1 in controlling <10-cm-tall Palmer amaranth (92% and 95% mortality in 2019). Sequential applications of florpyrauxifen-benzyl at 8 g ae ha−1 were as effective as single or sequential applications at 30 g ae ha−1. However, no rate of florpyrauxifen-benzyl applied to 20- or 40-cm-tall Palmer amaranth was sufficient to provide season-long control of the weed, with the escaping female plants producing as many as 6,120 seed per plant following a single application.

Gowan Company recently registered benzobicyclon, a WSSA Group 27 herbicide, as a postflood option in rice. It is the first 4-hydroxyphenylpyruvate dioxygenase-inhibiting herbicide commercially available in mid-southern U.S. rice production. In 2018 and 2019, field experiments were conducted across multiple sites in Arkansas to determine if the addition of benzobicyclon to quizalofop- or imidazolinone-resistant rice herbicide programs would improve weedy rice control. Across site-years, one application of quizalofop, either at the 1- or 3-leaf rice stage, followed by benzobicyclon applied postflood, provided comparable weedy rice control to two sequential applications of quizalofop, which is a standard herbicide program in quizalofop-resistant rice. Additionally, treatments containing quizalofop or quizalofop followed by benzobicyclon injured rice ≤5% at 28 d after the postflood application. Across site-years, at 28 d after the postflood application of benzobicyclon, all treatments containing a full-season herbicide program followed by benzobicyclon postflood provided comparable or improved weedy rice control when compared to two sequential early postemergence applications of imazethapyr. In both experiments, rice treated with benzobicyclon yielded comparably or better than treatments containing the standard herbicide program for each system. Findings from this research suggest that the use of benzobicyclon in quizalofop- and imidazolinone-resistant rice systems could be an additional and viable weedy rice control option for rice producers.

The tolerance of cereal rye to eight herbicides registered for use in wheat, at two rates, was evaluated for potential labeling in cereal rye to expand limited chemical weed control options. Across five site-years, halauxifen-methyl + florasulam, pyroxsulam, and thifensulfuron-methyl + tribenuron-methyl applied at a 2X rate to cereal rye at Zadoks (Z) 13 caused less than 15% injury and had no impact on cereal rye density. These herbicides at the 2X rate reduced cereal rye heights 11% at 10 days after treatment (DAT), with rye recovering by 31 DAT; cereal rye heights were not reduced with these herbicides at their 1X rate. In contrast, significant injury was observed with the 1X rate of mesosulfuron-methyl (45%), pinoxaden (27%), and pinoxaden + fenoxaprop-P-ethyl (30%) applied postemergence; early-season height was reduced 19% to 26%. Residual herbicide pyroxasulfone applied as a delayed preemergence at Z 10 and flumioxazin + pyroxasulfone applied at Z 11 caused 27% to 28% and 16% to 47% injury, respectively, when the 1X rate was activated by rainfall within 2 d of application. These residual herbicides reduced cereal rye height and density up to 35% and 40%, respectively. Cereal rye grain yield was not influenced by herbicide or rate applied.

In this research, the deep-learning optimizers Adagrad, AdaDelta, Adaptive Moment Estimation (Adam), and Stochastic Gradient Descent (SGD) were applied to the deep convolutional neural networks AlexNet, GoogLeNet, VGGNet, and ResNet that were trained to recognize weeds among alfalfa using photographic images taken at 200×200, 400×400, 600×600, and 800×800 pixels. An increase in the image sizes reduced the classification accuracy of all neural networks. The neural networks that were trained with images of 200×200 pixels resulted in better classification accuracy than the other image sizes investigated here. The optimizers AlexNet and GoogLeNet trained with AdaDelta and SGD outperformed the Adagrad and Adam optimizers; VGGNet trained with AdaDelta outperformed Adagrad, Adam, and SGD; and ResNet trained with AdaDelta and Adagrad outperformed the Adam and SGD optimizers. When the neural networks were trained with the best-performing input image size (200×200 pixels) and the best-performing deep learning optimizer, VGGNet was the most effective neural network, with high precision and recall values (≥0.99) when validation and testing datasets were used. Alternatively, ResNet was the least effective neural network in its ability to classify images containing weeds. However, there was no difference among the different neural networks in their ability to differentiate between broadleaf and grass weeds. The neural networks discussed herein may be used for scouting weed infestations in alfalfa and further integrated into the machine vision subsystem of smart sprayers for site-specific weed control.

Tolpyralate is an herbicide that is usually mixed with atrazine for broad-spectrum weed control in corn. Previous research has provided information on the effective dose (ED) of tolpyralate applied alone and in a 1:33.3 mixture with atrazine; however, tolpyralate is commercially applied at a dose of 30 to 40 g ai ha−1 with a minimum of 560 g ai ha−1 of atrazine. Therefore, five field trials were conducted over 3 yr (2019 to 2021) to determine the ED of atrazine to complement 30 g ai ha−1 of tolpyralate to achieve 80%, 90%, and 95% control of seven weed species 2, 4, and 8 wk after application (WAA). Tolpyralate was applied alone and in a mixture with atrazine doses ranging from 50 to 2,000 g ai ha−1. At 8 WAA, the ED of atrazine for 95% control of velvetleaf, common ragweed, common lambsquarters, and wild mustard was below the minimum label dose of atrazine on the commercial tolpyralate label, ranging from 430 to 520 g ai ha−1, which supports the use of the minimum label dose of atrazine. In contrast, redroot pigweed required 1,231 g ai ha−1 of atrazine to complement tolpyralate for 95% control 8 WAA. At 8 WAA, barnyardgrass and a mixture of green foxtail and giant foxtail (Setaria spp.) were not controlled by 80%, 90%, or 95% with tolpyralate applied alone or co-applied with any dose of atrazine evaluated in this study. The results of this study conclude that tolpyralate + atrazine is highly efficacious on several weed species at atrazine doses of 40 to 130 g ai ha−1 below the label dose of 560 g ai ha−1, but the use of the higher dose of tolpyralate or another herbicide may be required to improve control of redroot pigweed and grass weed species.

Successful weed management, particularly use of chemical control, is very important for commercial lettuce production on organic soils in the Everglades Agricultural Area in south Florida. Field experiments were conducted in 2016 and 2017 to determine the efficacy of herbicides (pronamide, bensulide, imazethapyr, or oxyfluorfen) applied preemergence (PRE) either alone or followed by a postemergence (POST) application of imazethapyr for weed control and lettuce (romaine and iceberg) yield. Preemergence-applied oxyfluorfen (0.56 kg ha−1) resulted in significant lettuce injury, including stand loss, while PRE applications of pronamide (4.44 kg ha−1), bensulide (5.6 and 10.1 kg ha−1), or imazethapyr (0.035 g ha−1) resulted in transient lettuce injury and no significant stand loss. Similarly, PRE-applied pronamide, bensulide, and imazethapyr followed by POST-applied imazethapyr did not result in significant lettuce stand loss or injury. When contrasted as a group, PRE-applied herbicides followed by a POST application of imazethapyr provided better spiny amaranth and common lambsquarters control compared with PRE-applied herbicides or POST-applied imazethapyr-only treatments. Lettuce yield was highest with PRE herbicides followed by POST imazethapyr compared with PRE herbicides or POST-applied imazethapyr-only treatments, indicating a yield benefit of having a PRE followed by POST herbicide weed control program in lettuce grown on organic soils. However, oxyfluorfen is not an option for lettuce on organic soils because of unacceptable stand reduction and crop injury. Whether to apply pronamide, bensulide, or imazethapyr PRE followed by a POST application of imazethapyr for broadleaf weed control in lettuce on organic soils depends on the species present, cost, and ease of application.

Three dose-response trials were performed in 2020 and 2021 to determine the tolerance of two Jack O’Lantern pumpkin cultivars to fomesafen applied preemergence at two Indiana locations: the Southwest Purdue Agricultural Center (SWPAC) and the Pinney Purdue Agricultural Center (PPAC). The experiment was a split-plot arrangement in which the main plot was the fomesafen rate of application (0, 280, 560, 840, and 1,220 g ai ha–1), and the subplot was the pumpkin cultivar (‘Bayhorse Gold’ and ‘Carbonado Gold’). As the fomesafen rate increased from 280 to 1,120 g ha–1, the predicted pumpkin emergence decreased from 85% to 25% of the nontreated control at SWPAC-2020, but only from 99% to 74% at both locations in 2021. The severe impact on emergence at SWPAC-2020 was attributed to rainfall. Visible injury included bleaching and chlorosis due to the herbicide splashing from the soil surface onto the leaves and included stunting, but injury was transient. As the fomesafen rate increased from 280 to 1,120 g ha–1, the predicted marketable orange pumpkin yield decreased from 95% to 24% of the nontreated control at SWPAC-2020 and 98% to 74% at PPAC-2021. Similarly, the predicted marketable orange pumpkin fruit number decreased from 94% to 21% at SWPAC-2020 and 98% to 74% at PPAC-2021. Fomesafen rate did not affect marketable orange pumpkin yield and fruit number at SWPAC-2021 and marketable orange pumpkin fruit weight at any location-year. Overall, the fomesafen rate of 280 g ha–1 was safe for use preemergence in the pumpkin cultivars ‘Bayhorse Gold’ and ‘Carbonado Gold’ within one day after planting, but there is a risk of increased crop injury with increasing rainfall.

A 2-yr field experiment was conducted to explore the effects on weed growth and crop productivity of intercropping sweet corn with summer savory. Five cropping patterns were set up: sweet corn alone (16 seeds m−2, in rows, 75 cm apart), summer savory alone (40 seeds m−2, broadcasted), and three intercropping ratios of 75% sweet corn, 25% summer savory (75%C:25%S), 50%C:50%S, and 25%C:75%S, of plant densities used in respective monocultures. When intercropping, weed biomass decreased as the proportion of summer savory increased, with a reduction of 48%, 61%, and 70 % in 75%C:25%S, 50%C:50%S, and 25%C:75%S, respectively, compared to sweet corn alone. In parallel, sweet corn yield was higher under intercropping compared to its monoculture and increased as the proportion of summer savory decreased, with yield increases compared to corn monoculture of 38%, 32%, and 15% in the first year and 48%, 23%, and 14 % in the second year in 75%C:25%S, 50%C:50%S, and 25%C:75%S, respectively. However, the intercropping pattern had the opposite effect on summer savory yield, with a significant reduction in yield with an increasing ratio of sweet corn. Our results indicate that intercropping sweet corn with summer savory can increase both weed suppression and yield of sweet corn compared to crop monoculture.

False-green kyllinga is a problematic C4 perennial Cyperaceae species. Previous research examined herbicide efficacy but has not integrated nonchemical practices with herbicides. Replicate field experiments were conducted to evaluate late-summer postemergence applications of herbicides in combination with turf-type tall fescue interseeding for false-green kyllinga control. Seven herbicide treatments and a nontreated control formed a complete factorial, with tall fescue interseeding or no seeding (eight-by-two factorial). Six herbicide treatments consisted of single postemergence applications of halosulfuron-methyl (70 g ha–1), imazosulfuron (420 g ha–1), and sulfentrazone + carfentrazone (280 + 30 g ha–1) applied 4 wk before tall fescue interseeding (WBS) and the day of interseeding. Glyphosate (220 g ae ha–1) applied the day of interseeding was the seventh herbicide treatment. Tall fescue was interseeded in September, and false-green kyllinga control was evaluated the following summer. In combination with tall fescue interseeding, imazosulfuron and halosulfuron applied 4 WBS as well as glyphosate applied the day of interseeding controlled false-green kyllinga better than all other treatments. In July, imazosulfuron and halosulfuron treatments applied 4 WBS and combined with interseeding had 1% to 6% false-green kyllinga cover, respectively, compared to 28% and 62% cover, respectively, without interseeding. Interseeding alone controlled false-green kyllinga <50%. Imazosulfuron, halosulfuron, and sulfentrazone + carfentrazone applied the day of seeding severely injured emerging tall fescue seedlings and reduced turfgrass quality the following spring. Applying imazosulfuron or halosulfuron in late summer and interseeding turf-type tall fescue 4 wk later or applying glyphosate the day of seeding are effective strategies for postemergence false-green kyllinga control. Integrating herbicides and the cultural practice of tall fescue interseeding provided more false-green kyllinga control than either practice alone.

Hair fescue is a perennial grass weed in lowbush blueberry fields that forms dense sods and reduces yield. As a result of natural tolerance or resistance of this grass to other currently registered herbicides growers rely on preemergence (PRE) applications of pronamide and postemergence (POST) applications of the Group 2 herbicides foramsulfuron and nicosulfuron + rimsulfuron for hair fescue management. This causes repeated application of Group 2 herbicides, which is compounded by the recent registration of flazasulfuron for POST suppression of hair fescue in lowbush blueberry. Mixtures of Group 2 herbicides with the amino acid–inhibiting herbicides glyphosate (Group 9) and glufosinate (Group 10), however, can improve weed control and may delay herbicide resistance development. This research used a factorial arrangement of Group 2 herbicides (none, foramsulfuron [35 g ai ha−1], nicosulfuron + rimsulfuron [13 + 13 g ai ha−1], flazasulfuron [50 g ai ha−1]) and mixtures (none, with glyphosate [902 g ae ha−1], and with glufosinate [750 g ai ha−1]) to identify possible mixtures that improve weed control and delay resistance development. Herbicides were applied in spring nonbearing year, fall bearing year, and fall nonbearing year, with each application timing conducted as a separate experiment. Foramsulfuron and nicosulfuron + rimsulfuron were not effective as fall applications, and spring applications of these herbicides with glyphosate or glufosinate improved hair fescue suppression. Glyphosate and glufosinate were more effective as fall rather than spring applications. Flazasulfuron was effective across all application timings, although its mixture with glufosinate generally improved hair fescue suppression. Flazasulfuron + glufosinate is tentatively recommended as an effective mixture for management of spring nonbearing-year and fall bearing-year hair fescue in lowbush blueberry.

Control of southern pine species that easily establish from seed, such as loblolly pine and slash pine (wilding pines), has historically been achieved economically through the use of prescribed fire or application of glyphosate or glyphosate and saflufenacil during site preparation. Currently, alternatives to glyphosate are being investigated for wilding pine control because of health and safety concerns over glyphosate reported by some organizations. Two exploratory studies in the Coastal Plain Region of Georgia investigated the potential of several herbicides for wilding pine control with 0.56 to 0.70 kg ha−1 of 0.9-kg ae imazapyr included in all herbicide treatments. Application timings for Study 1 were July and September (n = 8 treatments per timing), whereas Study 2 took place in July and early November (n = 4 treatments per timing). In Study 1, various rates of choline triclopyr, ester triclopyr, fluroxypyr, aminopyralid + florpyrauxifen-benzyl, and aminopyralid + triclopyr were tested, while two treatments contained glyphosate. Study 2 investigated mixtures containing flumioxazin, glufosinate, and triclopyr. Results for Study 1 revealed that the two treatments containing glyphosate had the greatest percent loblolly pine control after 120 d (87.5% and 88.6% control, respectively), while the next best control was offered by a treatment containing imazapyr plus 3.36 kg ha−1 choline triclopyr (52.6% control). July treatments offered better control than September treatments, but the efficacy of September treatments may have been impacted by a severe drought. In Study 2, treatments applied during early November that contained imazapyr and glufosinate or imazapyr, glufosinate, and flumioxazin resulted in 100% control of mixed loblolly and slash pine seedlings and saplings. All November treatments offered better control than July treatments in Study 2. Promising results from Study 2 suggest that glufosinate may warrant additional study for use in forestry site preparation as an alternative to glyphosate to control wilding pines.

Hazelnut hectarage is expanding in Oregon. Weed competition in young orchards can severely reduce the growth and survival of plants. New orchards replace crops, including grass seed fields, which often are infested with herbicide-resistant weeds, including Italian ryegrass. This research evaluated hazelnut tolerance to pronamide, pyroxasulfone, and S-metolachlor. Three multi-year field experiments were conducted at newly planted orchards in the Willamette Valley during 2019 and 2020. Treatments compared pyroxasulfone (0.24 kg ai ha–1), pronamide (2.3 kg ai ha–1), and S-metolachlor (1.39 kg ai ha–1) applied at the reference rate, and at 2× and 4× that rate, compared to weed-free check. Treatments were applied within 2 wk after the winter transplant and reapplied the following year. Hazelnuts showed a high tolerance to all herbicides tested, with negligible injury noted (<3%). No changes in leaf chlorophyll were noted, averaging 242, 179, and 225 mg m–2 on each study site. Tree growth was similar among treatments as measured by trunk cross-sectional area, canopy volume, and internode length. A separate study evaluated the control of Italian ryegrass. Pronamide and pyroxasulfone provide 100% control of Italian ryegrass, and weed dry weight was reduced by up to 79 % compared to the grower standard. This study documents that hazelnuts are tolerant to pronamide, pyroxasulfone, and S-metolachlor, and that these herbicides can improve weed management in young orchards.

Field studies were conducted to determine hazelnut tolerance to quinclorac and clopyralid and control efficacy of Canada thistle and field bindweed at three commercial orchards in western Oregon. Hazelnut cultivars evaluated included ‘Jefferson’, ‘Wepster’, and ‘McDonald’. Clopyralid at 278, 547, and 1,090 g ae ha−1, and quinclorac at 420, 840, and 1,680 g ai ha−1 were applied once a year as basal-directed applications to trees that were 1, 2, and 5 yr old. Treatments were imposed in the early spring of 2019 and reapplied in 2020. In both years, treatments covered hazelnut suckers. Hazelnut injury from clopyralid and quinclorac was consistently between 0% and 13% and not different from nontreated control plants (P > 0.05) between 14 d and 455 d after initial treatment. Similarly, there was no treatment effect on plant canopy index, leaf chlorophyll content, trunk cross-sectional area, internode length, or yield among treatments, even at the highest rates of clopyralid and quinclorac. In separate efficacy studies, clopyralid (278 g ae ha−1) resulted in 68% Canada thistle control and did not differ when clopyralid was mixed with carfentrazone (278 + 35 g ai ha−1) or glufosinate (278 + 1,148 g ai ha−1). Clopyralid-containing herbicide treatments suppressed field bindweed growth but did not kill plants even when mixed with carfentrazone or glufosinate. Quinclorac (420 g ha−1) alone provided 80% control of field bindweed and 93% and 98% control when combined with rimsulfuron (35 g ai ha−1) or carfentrazone (35 g ai ha−1), respectively. Still, all herbicide treatments resulted in similar field bindweed biomass. Results indicate that clopyralid and quinclorac are effective tools to help manage Canada thistle and field bindweed and that hazelnut can tolerate clopyralid and quinclorac at rates equivalent to 4-fold commercial-use rates not affecting plant growth and yield.

Developing an effective weed management strategy is crucial to sustainable rice production in Nigeria. Rainfed lowland ecology contributes significantly to the volume of rice cultivated in terms of yield and land acreage. Nevertheless, increased weed infestation remains one of the major production constraints. This review highlights the strength and weaknesses of weed management practices in rainfed lowland ecology and research gaps, and examines the potential for developing a sustainable weed management strategy for lowland rice. In this review, a rainfed lowland situation is described (where water is limited) to engage flooding as a potential weed control option, due to the undulating land terrains. Effective weed management begins with creating a weed-free environment at the critical crop growth stages, such that broadcasted or transplanted rice seedlings can efficiently use water, nutrients, and light. Sustainable weed management practices in Nigerian lowland ecology would therefore imply that farmers begin to incorporate crop rotation to suppress problem weeds in continuous rice cropping systems; adopt conventional or minimum tillage to enhance herbicide efficacy and early establishment of rice; adopt weed-competitive and high-yielding cultivars; and practice appropriate spacing, seeding rate, and seeding methods that can support easy adoption of mechanical weeders and optimum plant population to suppress weed pressure at a later growth stage. This is feasible where farmers are supported with infrastructure, farm machinery, and other necessary inputs. Future research should engage lowland rice farmers in specific agroecological zones.

Small-acreage brassica vegetables need additional herbicide options. Among the vegetables grown in California are a number of niche crops, such as bok choi and brussels sprouts, that have a limited number of registered herbicides, such as DCPA. Sulfentrazone and S-metolachlor have food use tolerances for use on brassica head and stem Group 5-16, which includes crops like bok choi and brussels sprouts, as well as brassica leafy greens Subgroup 4-16B, which includes crops like kale. However, there is a lack of data for S-metolachlor and sulfentrazone on a wide variety of seeded and transplanted brassica vegetables. S-metolachlor applied preemergence (PRE) was evaluated on six direct-seeded brassica vegetables during 2019 and 2020, including bok choi, broccoli rabe, collard, mizuna, radish, and mustard greens. S-metolachlor and sulfentrazone were both evaluated PRE in transplanted brussels sprouts and kale. The results indicate that most of the seeded brassica vegetables were tolerant of S-metolachlor and that transplanted brassica vegetables were tolerant of both S-metolachlor and sulfentrazone. Broccoli rabe was moderately injured in 2020, but yields did not vary among treatments either year.