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A multistudy approach to understanding weed population shifts in medium- to long-term tillage systems

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

A. Gordon Thomas ,
Douglas A. Derksen ,
Robert E. Blackshaw ,
Rene C. Van Acker ,
Anne Légère ,
Paul R. Watson  and
Gary C. Turnbull
A. Gordon Thomas
Affiliation:
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, 107 Science Place, Saskatoon, SK S7N 0X2, Canada
Douglas A. Derksen
Affiliation:
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, P.O. Box 1000A, RR#3, Brandon, MB R7A 5Y3, Canada
Rene C. Van Acker
Affiliation:
Department of Plant Science, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB R3T 2N2, Canada
Anne Légère
Affiliation:
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, 2560 boulevard Hochelaga, Sainte-Foy, QC G1V 2J3, Canada
Paul R. Watson
Affiliation:
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, P.O. Box 1000A, RR#3, Brandon, Canada MB R7A 5Y3
Gary C. Turnbull
Affiliation:
Dow AgroSciences Canada, 39 Scurfield Boulevard, Winnipeg, MB R3Y 1G4, Canada
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Abstract

Production systems based on reduced-tillage practices account for over 60% of the cropped land on the Canadian Prairies. Concerns have been expressed regarding potential shifts in weed communities as a result of changing tillage practices. Study objectives were to (1) determine the feasibility of combining and analyzing weed abundance data from 10 medium- to long-term studies on the Canadian Prairies that compared conventional-, reduced-, and zero-tillage systems, (2) identify species that are associated with specific tillage systems, and (3) place species into plant response groups according to the similarity of their tillage system response. Conventional-tillage systems were defined as including both a fall and spring sweep-plow operation before seeding spring crops, whereas reduced tillage consisted of only one sweep-plow operation shortly before seeding. Crops within zero-tillage systems were planted directly into the previous crop's stubble. The association between weed species and tillage systems was investigated using indicator species analysis. Species were assigned to tillage response groups on the basis of the results of the analysis and the expertise of the project scientists. Perennial species such as Canada thistle and perennial sowthistle were associated with reduced- and zero-tillage systems, but annual species were associated with a range of tillage systems. Field pennycress was placed in the conventional-tillage response group, Russian thistle in the zero-tillage group, and wild buckwheat and common lambsquarters were equally abundant in all tillage systems. The goal of classifying weed species based on common functional traits in relation to responses to tillage systems was not realized, in part, because the required information on species biology and ecology was either unavailable or not applicable to local conditions.

Keywords

Canada thistle, Cirsium arvense (L.) Scop. CIRARcommon lambsquarters, Chenopodium album L. CHEALfield pennycress, Thlaspi arvense L. THLARperennial sowthistle, Sonchus arvensis L. SONARRussian thistle, Salsola iberica Sennen & Pau SASKRwild buckwheat, Polygonum convolvulus L. POLCOIndicator species analysisplant functional groupsreduced tillageweed communities
Type
Symposium
Information
Weed Science , Volume 52 , Issue 5 , October 2004 , pp. 874 - 880
Copyright
Copyright © Weed Science Society of America 

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