Natural Products for Weed Management in Organic Farming in the USA

2010 ◽  
Vol 21 (4) ◽  
pp. 156-160 ◽  
Author(s):  
Franck E. Dayan ◽  
Stephen O. Duke
Keyword(s):  
Natural Products ◽  
Organic Farming ◽  
Weed Management ◽  
The Usa

A rotation design to reduce weed density in organic farming

2010 ◽  
Vol 25 (3) ◽  
pp. 189-195 ◽  
Author(s):  
Randy L. Anderson
Keyword(s):  
Population Dynamics ◽  
Organic Farming ◽  
Weed Management ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Soil Health ◽  
Population Based ◽  
Weed Population ◽  
Weed Density ◽  
Organic Systems ◽  
Herbicide Use

AbstractWeeds are a major obstacle to successful crop production in organic farming. Producers may be able to reduce inputs for weed management by designing rotations to disrupt population dynamics of weeds. Population-based management in conventional farming has reduced herbicide use by 50% because weed density declines in cropland across time. In this paper, we suggest a 9-year rotation comprised of perennial forages and annual crops that will disrupt weed population growth and reduce weed density in organic systems. Lower weed density will also improve effectiveness of weed control tactics used for an individual crop. The rotation includes 3-year intervals of no-till, which will improve both weed population management and soil health. Even though this rotation has not been field tested, it provides an example of designing rotations to disrupt population dynamics of weeds. Also, producers may gain additional benefits of higher crop yield and increased nitrogen supply with this rotation design.

Control of late blight in organic farming with low copper dosages or natural products as alternatives to copper

2019 ◽  
Vol 155 (3) ◽  
pp. 769-778 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna La Torre ◽  
Lorenzo Righi ◽  
Valeria Iovino ◽  
Valerio Battaglia
Keyword(s):  
Natural Products ◽  
Late Blight ◽  
Organic Farming

scholarly journals Farmer perspectives and experiences introducing the novel perennial grain Kernza intermediate wheatgrass in the US Midwest

2019 ◽  
Vol 35 (6) ◽  
pp. 653-662 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marisa Lanker ◽  
Michael Bell ◽  
Valentin D. Picasso
Keyword(s):  
Weed Management ◽  
Nutritive Value ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
Economic Assessment ◽  
Research Process ◽  
Economic Benefits ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Intermediate Wheatgrass ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Perennial Grain

AbstractKernza® intermediate wheatgrass (Thinopyrum intermedium) is a novel perennial grain and forage crop with the potential to provide multiple ecosystem services, which recently became commercially available to farmers in the USA. The viability and further expansion of this promising crop require understanding how it may fit the needs of farmers’ livelihoods and the structure of their farming systems. However, no prior research has studied the perceptions and experiences of Kernza growers. The goals of this research were to understand why farmers grow Kernza, how Kernza fits into their systems and identify challenges for future research. We conducted in-depth interviews with ten growers in the North Central USA during the summer of 2017, who accounted for a third of the Kernza farmers in the USA at the time. All farmers had a positive attitude toward experimentation and trying new practices, and they were interested in Kernza for its simultaneous ecological and economic benefits. Kernza was marginal in terms of area, quality of fields and resources allocated in the farm systems, which also meant that farmers maintained low costs and risks. Growers utilized and valued Kernza as a dual-use crop (grain and forage), sometimes not harvesting grain but almost always grazing or harvesting hay and straw for bedding. Weeds were perceived as a challenge in some cases, but Kernza was valued as a highly weed-suppressive crop in others. Farmers requested information on optimal establishment practices, assessment of forage nutritive value, how to maintain grain yields over years, weed management, markets and economic assessment of Kernza systems. These results agree with other cases on sustainable practices adoption showing that engaging farmers in the research process from the beginning, identifying knowledge gaps and testing management alternatives are critical for the success and expansion of novel agricultural technologies.

scholarly journals Use of Natural Products for Weed Management in High-Value Crops: An Overview

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rupinder Saini ◽  
Sukhbir Singh
Keyword(s):  
Natural Products ◽  
Weed Management ◽  
Complex Structure ◽  
Poor Performance ◽  
Integrated Approach ◽  
Good Alternative ◽  
Ecological Stability ◽  
Natural Herbicides ◽  
Low Toxicity ◽  
Potential Impact

Over the last five decades, weed management systems have relied primarily on synthetic herbicides. Due to the concerns over the potential impact of chemicals on human health and the environment, efforts are being made to reduce the heavy reliance on synthetic herbicides. To reduce the use of synthetic herbicides, the use of natural products such as essential oils, plant extracts, allelochemicals, agricultural by-products, and some microbes are gaining attention because of their short environmental half-life and low toxicity. They are a good alternative to synthetic herbicides, especially in organic agriculture, since they focus on environmental protection, and ecological stability. Most of the commercially available natural herbicides are non-selective and require careful application in order to preserve the cash crops. Although many studies in this direction have been undertaken, the use of these natural products is still not common because of their cost the difficulties in their synthesis due to their complex structure, cost effectiveness, poor performance, and rapid degradation. When used singly, these natural herbicides do not perform as well as the chemical herbicides. An integrated approach may provide better results. Using a combination of natural herbicides may be more effective than using just one.  

scholarly journals Organic barley producers’ desired qualities for crop improvement

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (S1) ◽  
pp. 35-42
Author(s):  
Brian P. Baker ◽  
Brigid M. Meints ◽  
Patrick M. Hayes
Keyword(s):  
Organic Farming ◽  
Animal Feed ◽  
Crop Improvement ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
Organic Systems ◽  
Multiple Markets ◽  
Organic Farmers ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Organic Farming Systems

AbstractBarley fits well into many different organic farming systems. It can be grown as either a winter or spring annual crop in many temperate regions. Barley can be used for food, malting, or animal feed, providing growers with diverse marketing opportunities. Despite its advantages, many organic farmers in the USA have not adopted barley as a regular crop in their rotation. Researchers surveyed organic barley producers to discover what they considered to be the main obstacles to growing barley. The primary obstacles identified were limited markets and price. Breeding and development of high-quality barley suitable for organic systems and specialty markets may be a way to expand markets and secure a better price. Farmers identified yield as the most important agronomic trait of interest, but other traits such as nutritional quality were also highly ranked. Naked (hull-less) barley bred for multi-use quality is a possible alternative that allows organic farmers to sell into multiple markets. Most respondents expressed interest in the development of such varieties suitable for organic farming conditions. The researchers conducted follow-up interviews to obtain detailed information on how barley is used in organic farming systems, production practices, costs of production, and what traits farmers would like to see breeders focus on.

In the weeds: distinguishing organic farmers who want information about ecological weed management from those who need it

2018 ◽  
Vol 34 (5) ◽  
pp. 460-471 ◽  
Author(s):  
Doug Bessette ◽  
Sarah Zwickle ◽  
Robyn Wilson
Keyword(s):  
Weed Management ◽  
Information Seeking ◽  
Cultural Practices ◽  
Additional Information ◽  
Organic Farmers ◽  
Seeking Behavior ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Organic Community ◽  
Ecological Weed Management ◽  
University Scientists

AbstractThe benefits of farming organically in the USA are increasingly known; however, organic farmers also encounter considerable risks, especially from weeds. Without herbicides, organic farmers can rely only on crop rotations, mechanical cultivation, manual weeding, beneficial insects and other cultural practices, termed ecological weed management (EWM), to control weeds. Despite promising results and the many ways in which EWM can be employed, it remains poorly adopted by the organic community. Organic farmers resist research and recommendations from University scientists and Extension, instead preferring to rely on local family and friends and their own experience to guide decisions. Here we investigate factors that may lead organic farmers to recognize that they need additional information about EWM and to seek that information out. Using a national survey of organic farmers (n = 554) and a risk-information seeking and processing model, we show that farmers’ risk and benefit perceptions, worry, social norms encouraging seeking out information, and farmers’ own perceived knowledge gaps, particularly with respect to their most problematic weed, influence information-seeking behavior. Identifying characteristics that may distinguish those organic farmers who need and want additional information, we provide recommendations to Extension and University scientists about how best to communicate, build trust and provide decision support to the organic community with respect to EWM.

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