ARS | Publication request: Site-Specific Weed Management: Myth or Magic?

Submitted to: Meeting Abstract
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: January 31, 2006
Publication Date: March 8, 2006
Citation: Wiles, L. 2006. Site-Specific Weed Management: Myth or Magic?. Meeting Abstract. NSF-ADVANCE Distinguished Lecture Series, Kansas State University, Dept. Agronomy 3/8/2006

Technical Abstract: Site-specific weed management (SSWM) is a potential method to reduce the risks of herbicide use on water quality and public health without impacting crop yield. With site-specific weed management, areas of the field are left untreated where control is not economically justified. Where control is needed, the choice of herbicides may be varied for most cost-effective control of local populations. The benefit, or “magic” of SSWM is an expected 30 to 80% reduction in herbicide use, but this strategy has not been adopted as expected. Is this “magic” a myth? We can not answer this question yet because we have not yet done the necessary research for site-specific weed management to be feasible. We need to propose guidelines to help growers identify situations that are most favorable for the use of site-specific weed management and develop cost-effective methods to collect information about the distribution of weeds in a field to make a map. Growers need help in choosing and using the best methods to create useful weed maps from their data, translating weed maps into prescription maps, and formatting their prescription for their application equipment.