Punch planting, flame weeding and delayed sowing to reduce intra-row weeds in row crops

Summary in the original language of the document

Punch planting has recently been suggested to reduce intra-row weeds in organically grown row crops. In this method holes are punched in the ground with a minimum of soil disturbance and seeds are inserted into them, without soil disturbance outside the hole. The first experiments with a tractor-mounted prototype of a dibber drill (MK III) are presented here. In two years, three plant establishment procedures were compared at five different sowing dates in sugar beet and direct-sown onion. The plant establishment procedures were 1) normal sowing and mechanical control of weeds in the stale seedbed (N), 2) N + pre-emergence flame weeding (N+F), and 3) punch planting and flame weeding to control weeds in the seedbed and prior to crop emergence (P +F). The difference between N and N+F quantifies the effect of pre-emergence flame weeding, and the difference between N+F and P+F is defined to quantify the effect of the punch planting. Punch planting reduced the average intra-row weed density by 37% (95%-CI: 29%-46%) in onion, but had no effect in sugar beet. Pre-emergence flame weeding reduced the average intra-row weed density by 59% (95%-CI: 53%-64%) in onion and by 47% (95%-CI: 44%-51%) in sugar beet. Delayed sowing only reduced weed emergence in 2008. In carrot, punch planting reduced the average intra-row density by 34% (95%-CI: 19%-47%). In all crops, there were complex interactions between plant establishment procedure, year and delay of sowing. The implications of the technical inadequacies of the used dipper drill (MK III) are discussed, and it is concluded that technical improvements are required to improve crop establishment and to reduce weed emergence in the crop rows.

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• Punch planting, flame weeding and delayed sowing to reduce intra-row weeds in row crops. (deposited 15 Oct 2010 13:24) [Currently Displayed]
  • Punch planting, flame weeding and delayed sowing to reduce intra-row weeds in row crops. (deposited 22 Dec 2011 14:39)