Research was conducted to evaluate the effects of primary tillage (moldboard plowing and chisel plowing), secondary tillage (row cultivation), and herbicides on weed species changes in the soil seed bank in three irrigated row cropping sequences over a 3-yr period. The cropping sequences consisted of continuous corn for 3 yr (CN), continuous pinto beans for 3 yr (PB), and sugarbeets for 2 yr followed by corn in the third year (SB). A comparison between moldboard and chisel plowing indicated that weed seed were more prevalent near the soil surface after chisel plowing. The density of certain annual weed seed over the 3-yr period increased more rapidly in the seed bank after chisel plowing compared to moldboard plowing. Species exhibiting the most pronounced increase included hairy nightshade and stinkgrass in the PB cropping sequence and redroot pigweed and common lambsquarters in the SB sequence. Conversely, kochia seed density in the SB sequence decreased more rapidly in chisel-plowed plots. Row cultivation generally reduced seed bank densities of most species compared to uncultivated plots. Herbicide use in each cropping sequence produced a shift in the weed seed bank in favor of species less susceptible to applied herbicides. In particular, seed of hairy nightshade became prevalent in the PB cropping sequence, and seed of kochia, redroot pigweed, and common lambsquarters became prevalent in the SB sequence.

The effects of shade on the growth and photosynthetic capacity of the exotic noxious weed itchgrass (Rottboellia exaltata L. f.) were determined under controlled environment conditions. The plants were grown at day/night temperatures of 29/23 C under 100, 60, 25, and 2% sunlight in a climate-controlled greenhouse. Mathematical growth analysis techniques were used to evaluate the effects of shading on dry matter production and leaf area production. Infrared gas analysis and diffusion porometry techniques were used to evaluate the effects of shading on photosynthesis and stomatal resistance. Shading markedly reduced dry matter production. At 40 days after planting, plants grown in 2, 25, and 60% sunlight had 0.3, 16, and 55%, respectively, of the dry weight of the plants grown at 100% sunlight. Leaf area production was less severely retarded by shading; the plants grown at 2, 25, and 60% sunlight had, respectively, 1.7, 42, and 99% of the leaf area of the plants grown at 100% sunlight. Ambient photosynthetic rates of recently expanded, single, fully exposed leaves were 22.5, 51.6, and 65.5 mg CO2 dm-2h-1 in the 25, 60, and 100% sunlight treatments, respectively. Photosynthetic rates at saturating irradiance did not differ significantly in plants grown at 25, 60, or 100% sunlight and ranged from 76.4 to 78.0 mg CO2 dm-2h-1. Stomatal resistances, ranging from 6.0 to 7.5 s cm-1, also did not differ significantly among these plants. In terms of dry matter production, itchgrass is a shade-intolerant plant. However, even when grown in shade, itchgrass maintains the capacity for high photosynthetic rates and high growth rates when subsequently exposed to high irradiance. These characteristics help explain its competitiveness with crop species.

The effect of target site mutation for acetolactate synthase (ALS)-inhibitor resistance on ALS activity was evaluated in a sulfonylurea-resistant (R) biotype of prickly lettuce with a proline173 to histidine substitution in Domain A of the ALS enzyme. I50 values for ALS inhibition by several ALS-inhibitor herbicides were determined for R and susceptible (S) biotypes. Results from both a standard ALS assay and a chloroplast assay for ALS activity showed that the R biotype also was cross-resistant to representatives of the imidazolinone (imazethapyr) and triazolopyrimidine (flumetsulam) families, but was not cross-resistant to the pyrimidinyl oxybenzoate (4,6-dimethoxypyrimidin-2-y 1-oxy-2-benzoic acid) tested. The Km (pyruvate) was similar for ALS extracted from the R and S biotypes, suggesting that mutation for resistance did not alter pyruvate binding on the enzyme. However, specific activity of ALS from the R biotype was 57% less than specific activity of ALS from the S biotype, suggesting that the resistance mutation may affect enzyme function, expression, or stability. ALS from the R biotype was less sensitive to inhibition by the branched chain amino acids, valine, leucine, and isoleucine, than ALS from the S biotype. Reduced sensitivity to feedback inhibition was correlated with 70, 40, and 9% higher concentrations of valine, leucine, and isoleucine, respectively, on a per seed basis in R vs. S seed.

An experiment was initiated in 1970 and continued through 1979 by exhuming and germinating seed of 12 economic weed species buried beneath 23 cm of soil in eastern and western Nebraska. Loss in germination of exhumed seeds over years is mathematically characterized by the formula for the rectangular hyperbola, which represents many shapes of curves that have zero as their lower limit. Of the 12 weed species, only fall panicum (Panicum dichotomiflorum Michx.) and redroot pigweed (Amaranthus retroflexus L.) seed germination did not drop significantly over the 10-yr burial period. Germination of redroot pigweed seed was higher when buried in eastern Nebraska, but was higher for smooth groundcherry (Physalis subglabrata Mack&Bush.) and velvetleaf (Abutilon theophrasti Medic.) when buried in western Nebraska. Germination of the other nine species were not affected by burial location. The 12 weed species can be ranked as those showing most to least rapid loss of germination during burial for 10 yr as follows: honeyvine milkweed [Ampelamus albidus (Nutt.) Britt.], hemp dogbane (Apocynum cannabinum L.), kochia [Kochia scoparia (L.) Schrad.], sunflower (Helianthus annum L.), large crabgrass [Digitaria sanguinalis (L.) Scop.], common milkweed (Asclepias syriaca L.), musk thistle (Carduus nutans L.), velvetleaf, fall panicum, redroot pigweed, green foxtail [Setaria viridis (L.) Beauv.], and smooth groundcherry.

An oil soluble formulation of the dodecyl (51% w/w) and the tetradecyl (13% w/w) amine salts of (2,4-dichlorophenoxy)acetic acid (2,4-D) was diluted with diesel oil and applied in homogeneous sprays of 100, 200, and 400-μ. droplets to seedlings of sunflower (Helianthus annuus L. ‘Peredovik’). At each droplet size all combinations of five dosage levels and five spray volumes were compared. For the same applied dosage the amount of stem curvature increased as droplet-size was decreased. When compared with 100-μ droplets, approximately three times and six times as much active ingredient was needed to produce the same effect with 200-μ and 400-μ droplets, respectively. For a fixed droplet-size, the effective dosage could be increased equally well by increasing the concentration or by increasing the number of droplets per unit area.

The effect of quackgrass [Agropyron repens (L.) Beauv.] rhizome length and foliage height on glyphosate [N-(phosphonomethyl)glycine] translocation was determined on the basis of bud kill and 14 C-accumulation in quackgrass rhizomes. Foliar glyphosate treatments of 0.28 kg/ha resulted in significantly reduced quackgrass rhizome bud survival, and rates of 0.56, 0.84, and 1.12 kg/ha gave nearly complete bud kill. Rhizome buds on glyphosate-treated quackgrass plants with 20 to 90 nodes had a higher survival rate than rhizome buds on plants with 10 nodes. Quackgrass bud kill was greatest when glyphosate was applied to taller foliage. When all rhizome buds were not killed, those closest to the mother shoot survived glyphosate treatments. The 14C accumulation following applications of 14C-glyphosate was greatest in nodes near the rhizome tip and least in nodes near the mother shoot. This suggests that greater bud kill near the rhizome tip was due to larger accumulation of glyphosate in this part of the rhizome.

Glyphosate [N-(phosphonomethyl)glycine] significantly decreased the chlorophyll content of field-grown soybeans (Glycine max L. Merr. ‘Williams’) within 48 h after a 2.24-kg/ha treatment. In laboratory studies, 0.0001, 0.001, 0.01, 0.1, and 1 mM glyphosate reduced chlorophyll content of 7-day-old etiolated barley (Hordeum vulgare L. ‘Barsoy’) shoots 8, 12, 25, 49, and 77%, respectively, following 8 h dark incubation and 24 h illumination. Reduction of chlorophyll accumulation ranged from 6% with 0.001 mM glyphosate to 82% with 1.0 mM glyphosate. In studies with 8-day-old etiolated corn (Zea mays L. ‘Pioneer Brand 3535’) shoots, 0.1, 1.0, and 10.0 mM glyphosate decreased chlorophyll content of corn shoots 24, 42, and 50%, respectively, after 12 h of illumination. The rate of chlorophyll accumulation in corn shoots was significantly reduced 64% by 1.0 mM glyphosate over a 15-h illumination period. These rapid and substantial effects on chlorophyll accumulation suggest that interference with greening may be important in the mechanism of action of glyphosate.

The allelopathic potential of wheat [Triticum aestivum (L.) ‘Doublecrop′] straw residue was evaluated on weed-seed germination and seedling growth. The inhibition of weed-seed germination and seedling growth was extract-, species-, and temperature-dependent. The extracts prepared by agitating and soaking caused greater inhibition than those obtained by leaching. The descending order of species susceptibility was ivyleaf morningglory [Ipomoea hederacea (L.) Jacq.], velvetleaf (Abutilon theophrasti Medic.), pitted morningglory (Ipomoea lacunosa L.), hemp sesbania [Sesbania exaltata (Raf.) Cory], sicklepod (Cassia obtusifolia L.), and Japanese barnyard millet [Echinochloa crus-galli var. frumetaceae (Roxb.) Link]. Incubation at 35 C caused the greatest inhibition of germination and growth.

Ten plant species were grown in competition with each other at different soil moisture levels in a greenhouse. Corn (Zea mays L.), barnyardgrass (Echinochloa crusgalli (L.) Beauv.), cocklebur (Xanthium pensylvanicum Wallr.), sorghum (Sorghum vulgare L., var. RS 626), and large crabgrass (Digitaria sanguinalis (L) Scop.) produced the most growth in wet soil. Dry soil greatly reduced growth of these species. Palmer amaranth (Amaranthus palmeri S. Wats.) produced an intermediate amount of growth under wet and medium soil moisture and much less in dry soil. Kochia (Kochia scoparia (L.) Schrad.), Russian thistle (Salsola kali L., var. tenuifolia Tausch), buffalobur (Solanum rostratum Dunal.), and tumble-grass (Schedonnardus paniculatus (Nutt.) Trel.) produced much less growth under wet conditions than the more competitive species, but growth was not reduced in dry soil. Russian thistle produced twice as much growth in dry as in wet soil.

Triazine-susceptible (S) and -resistant (R) biotypes of smooth pigweed (Amaranthus hybridus L.) were grown in the field under competitive conditions at varying initial proportions of S and R plants. R plants were less competitive than S plants as measured by accumulation of total above-ground dry weight and seed dry weight. S and R plants were also grown in the field under non-competitive conditions at 100, 40, and 10% light. Growth rate at 10% light did not differ between S and R plants. At the two higher light intensities, dry-matter accumulation 11 weeks after seeding was about 40% less in the R plants. At 100% light, relative growth rate and net assimilation rate were lower in the R plants by about 3.5 and 19%, respectively. The light- and CO2-saturated rates of CO2 fixation in intact leaves of glasshouse-grown R plants were 20% less than those in S plants. An apparent 10 and 20% greater number of chlorophyll molecules per photosystem II reaction center in R plants (as compared with S plants) grown in the field at 40 and 100% light, respectively, did not explain differences between the S and R biotypes in photo synthetic capacity. The S and R plants did not differ in specific leaf weight or chlorophyll content on a leaf-area basis. Lower growth rate of R plants may be responsible for inferior competitive ability of R biotypes and could be the result of an impaired photosynthetic capacity.

In greenhouse studies, the calculated I50 (herbicide application resulting in 50% inhibition of shoot regrowth) in tall fescue was approximately 0.004 kg/ha for both sethoxydim and haloxyfop. In red fescue, the I50 for sethoxydim and haloxyfop was 9.4 kg/ha and 0.04 kg/ha, respectively. As measured in crude cell extracts of tall fescue, incorporation of 14C-acetyl-coenzyme A into fatty acids was inhibited 62 and 71% by 10 μM sethoxydim and 10 μM haloxyfop, respectively. In red fescue, 10 μM haloxyfop inhibited 14C-acetyl-CoA incorporation into fatty acids by 29%, whereas 10 μM sethoxydim had no effect. The I50 for inhibition of acetyl-coenzyme A carboxylase activity in tall fescue with sethoxydim and haloxyfop was 6.9 and 5.8 μM, respectively. In red fescue the I50 for haloxyfop was 118 μM. Sethoxydim concentrations as high as 1 mM had little effect on acetyl-coenzyme A carboxylase activity in red fescue. These results suggest that acetyl-coenzyme A carboxylase is a sensitive site of action for sethoxydim and haloxyfop in tall fescue, and that tolerance to these herbicides in red fescue is due to the presence of a more tolerant form of the enzyme.

The ability to predict time of weed seedling emergence relative to the crop is an important component of a mechanistic model describing weed and crop competition. In this paper, we hypothesized that the process of germination could be described by the interaction of temperature and water potential and that the rate of seedling shoot and radicle elongation vary as a function of temperature. To test these hypotheses, incubator studies were conducted using seeds and seedlings of common lambsquarters. Probit analysis was used to account for variation in cardinal temperatures and base water potentials and to develop parameters for a new mathematical model that describes seed germination and shoot and radicle elongation in terms of hydrothermal time and temperature, respectively. This hydrothermal time model describes the phenology of seed germination using a single curve, generated from the relationship of temperature and water potential.

Palmer amaranth (Amaranthus palmeri S. Watson), a dioecious summer annual species, is one of the most troublesome weeds in U.S. cropping systems. The evolution of resistance to protoporphyrinogen oxidase inhibitors in A. palmeri biotypes is a major cause of concern to soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] and cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) growers in the midsouthern United States. The objective of this study was to confirm and characterize the non–target site mechanism in a fomesafen-resistant accession from Randolph County, AR (RCA). A dose–response assay was conducted to assess the level of fomesafen resistance, and based on the GR50 values, the RCA accession was 18-fold more resistant to fomesafen than a susceptible (S) biotype. A TaqMan allelic discrimination assay and sequencing of the target-site genes PPX2 and PPX1 revealed no known or novel target-site mutations. An SYBR Green assay indicated no difference in PPX2 gene expression between the RCA and S biotypes. To test whether fomesafen resistance is metabolic in nature, the RCA and the S biotypes were treated with different cytochrome P450 (amitrole, piperonyl butoxide [PBO], malathion) and glutathione S-transferase (GST) (4-chloro-7-nitrobenzofurazan [NBD-Cl]) inhibitors, either alone or in combination with fomesafen. Malathion followed by (fb) fomesafen in RCA showed the greatest reduction in survival (67%) and biomass (86%) compared with fomesafen alone (45% and 66%, respectively) at 2 wk after treatment. Interestingly, NBD-Cl fb fomesafen also resulted in low survival (35%) compared with the fomesafen-only treatment (55%). Applications of malathion or NBD-Cl preceding fomesafen treatment resulted in reversal of fomesafen resistance, indicating the existence of cytochrome P450– and GST-based non–target site mechanisms in the RCA accession. This study confirms the first case of non–target site resistance to fomesafen in A. palmeri.

A study was conducted near Garden City, KS, under irrigated conditions to determine the effect of full-season Palmer amaranth infestation on corn water use efficiency and light interception in a fully developed corn canopy. Palmer amaranth at densities of 0, 0.5, 1, 2, 4, and 8 plants m−1 was established at corn planting in 1996 and 1997 and at two locations in 1998. Soil water was monitored 240 cm deep in 30-cm increments with a neutron probe each year and at each location every 10 d. Photosynthetic photon flux was measured in 1997 and 1998 by using a circular and a linear quantum sensor for above canopy and in four 50-cm increments for within canopy, respectively. Palmer amaranth reduced corn yield from 11 to 91% as density increased from 0.5 to 8 plants m−1. Water use efficiency of corn declined with increased Palmer amaranth density. Regardless of Palmer amaranth density, soil water extraction was greatest in the top 30 cm of the soil profile. The pattern of corn leaf area distribution was similar across Palmer amaranth densities, with 15, 70 to 75, and 5 to 15% of the total leaf area occurring 1.5 m, 0.5 to 1.5 m, and 0 to 0.5 m above the ground, respectively. In weed-free corn, over 60% of light was intercepted from 0.5 to 1.5 m above the ground. In contrast, in mixed canopies 60 to 80% of light was intercepted 1 m above the ground, where 80% of Palmer amaranth leaf area was concentrated. Under the conditions of this study, water was not a limiting factor. The effect of Palmer amaranth density on total light interception was not significant. However, within each treatment, light interception at different heights differed, emphasizing the importance of evaluating the vertical distribution of light through the canopy to assess the effect of weed height on light competition.

The influence of weed removal, cultivar, and row spacing on soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] yields was determined for 3 yr at the western edge of the soybean production area in the Great Plains in order to establish the critical weed-control periods. Early weed removal aided soybean stand establishment, and there was an inverse relationship between soybean stand and production of weed top-growth. Soybean seed weight and numbers per plant both increased as weed growth decreased. The soybean variety ‘Amsoy 71’ was more competitive than ‘Beeson’ to both early and late emerging weeds. Soybeans weeded at 2 through 4 weeks after planting did not show significantly reduced soybean yields from later emerging weeds. Thus, weed control the first month after planting is the most critical in obtaining high soybean yields.

The competitive effects of common cocklebur (Xanthium pensylvanicum Wallr.) on soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr. ‘Lee 74′] were studied on Peridge silt loam during 1975 and 1976. Interspecific competition reduced the dry matter (DM) and leaf area of the individual plants in comparison to the plants grown under intraspecific conditions. Twelve weeks after emergence the percentage reductions in DM and leaf area due to interspecific competition were similar, were greater in common cocklebur than soybeans, and were greater in the dry year (1976) than in the wet year (1975). The root systems of both species varied with plant age, soil depth, and seasonal moisture. In general, the density of roots of both species was greatest in the soil profile at a depth interval of 0 to 13 cm and in the dry year more roots were found deeper in the soil. Extraction of soil water began in mid-July at the 91-cm depth and in late July at the 137-cm depth. Roots of common cocklebur and of the interspecific treatment explored a greater volume of soil for water than did those of soybeans. The total amount of water used by a pure stand of soybeans and a mixed stand of soybeans and common cocklebur was greater than that used by a pure stand of common cocklebur. Approximately 25% less water was lost as evapotranspiration (ET) in the dry year than in the wet year. Values for water use efficiency (WUE) increased during the season. Little difference in WUE between species was found in the wet year and up to 10 weeks after emergence in the dry year.

Disappearance of rye cover crop residue and allelochemicals from rye residue were evaluated in a field study at Clayton, NC, in 1992 and 1993. The aerial portion of rye biomass declined linearly over time with 50% of the residue disappearing by 105 d after clipping. Extrapolations indicated all residue would disappear approximately 200 d after rye clipping. Total content of DIBOA and two related compounds, DIBOA-glucoside and BOA, in the residue also was measured over time. Fifty percent of the 0-d content of the compounds disappeared from residue 10 and 12 d after kill for 1992 and 1993, respectively. Extrapolations indicated content reached 0121 and 168 d after kill for 1992 and 1993, respectively. Reported duration of weed suppression by rye cover crops more closely follows disappearance of allelochemicals from rye residue than disappearance of the residue.

The cellulose-biosynthesis inhibitor (CBI) herbicides all selectively inhibit the synthesis of cellulose despite significant chemical differences. With the exception of quinclorac, they are most effective in inhibiting cellulose synthesis in dicot plants. Dichlobenil and isoxaben are the oldest and best studied of these herbicides, whereas flupoxam is a more recent introduction and acts in many ways similarly to isoxaben. Quinclorac is unusual in that it seems to act as a cellulose inhibitor in grasses but as an auxinic herbicide in dicots. These herbicides inhibit cell plate formation at one of two relatively late stages without affecting microtubule function. The effects of dichlobenil are different from other CBI herbicides; dichlobenil inhibits cellulose synthesis but promotes callose synthesis in its place. Suspension cells of both Lycopersicon esculentum and Nicotiana tabacum can become habituated to normally inhibitory concentrations of dichlobenil or isoxaben by replacing the normal cellulose network in their walls with pectin and extensin. Natural resistance to CBI herbicides is rare and has only been found in red algae species. Arabidopsis lines produced by mutagenesis all share changes in active site rather than alterations in uptake, translocation, or metabolism of these herbicides. The lack of cross-resistance to different CBI herbicides of these mutants indicates that no fewer than three different sites in the cellulose biosynthesis pathway are affected by the different herbicides in this class.

Solarization by means of transparent polyethylene sheets for 1 week in mid-summer significantly (P = 0.05) reduced numbers of viable prickly sida (Sida spinosa L.), common cocklebur (Xanthium pensylvanicum Wallr.), velvetleaf (Abutilon theophrasti Medic.) and spurred anoda [Anoda cristata (L.) Schlect.] seeds remaining after burial in soil. Solarization treatments for 1 to 4 weeks significantly reduced the total weed emergence of prickly sida, pigweeds (Amaranthus species), spurred anoda, morningglories (Ipomoea species), horse purslane (Trianthema portulacastrum L.), and various grass species from natural seed populations for the growing season by 64 to 98%. Purple nutsedge (Cyperus rotundus L.) emergence was increased by solarization in some instances. It was not determined if the increased emergence was from tubers or seeds. Maximum temperatures at the 1.3-cm soil depth under the polyethylene sheets reached 65 to 69C for 3 to 4 h of the mid-afternoon on clear days as compared with 43 to 50C at 1.3 cm in the soils that were not covered. Surface soil-moisture levels were also elevated under the polyethylene covers. Although solarization did not eliminate dormant weed seeds from the germination zone, the treatment killed nondormant seeds and greatly reduced the number of weed seedlings that otherwise would have emerged.

Johnsongrass [Sorghum halepense (L.) Pers., ♯3 SORHA] dry weight and johnsongrass culms/ha at harvest were more negatively correlated with soybean yield reductions than the number of johnsongrass plants/ha present at 4 to 6 weeks after planting. However, plant numbers can be determined in sufficient time to implement control measures to prevent yield reduction. Prediction equations for estimating soybean yield at various johnsongrass populations are Ŷ = 1776 + 424e-.023x2 for 0.25-m row spacing and Ŷ = 1668 + 643e-.004x2 for the 1-m row spacing, where Ŷ = estimated yield and x = the number of johnsongrass plants/10 m2. Full-season heavy johnsongrass competition reduced soybean yields from 59 to 88%. Soybeans in the 1-m row spacing were more competitive with low johnsongrass densities than in the 0.25-m row spacing. The johnsongrass-free requirement for soybeans was 4 weeks after planting and soybeans could not tolerate heavy infestations of johnsongrass for more than 5 weeks without loss in yield potential. Application of sethoxydim {2-[1-(ethoxyimino)-butyl]-5-[2-ethylthio)propyl]-3-hydroxy-2-cyclohexen-1-one} at 3 or 4 weeks after planting was effective in controlling heavy infestations of johnsongrass and preventing yield reductions due to competition.