John Holman
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Graduate Student, M.S. with A.J. Bussan and Perry Miller. email: jholman@montana.edu
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Narrative of Current Research:
| The Interactions Between Persian Darnel and Crop Species |  |
Researchers: John Holman, A.J. Bussan, and Perry Miller
Crop establishment and competitiveness are effective attributes to an integrated weed management system. A good competitive crop stand can minimize yield loss due to weed competition, and reduce weed productivity.
Crops vary in their competitive nature through variability in resource capture and use. Implementing a crop rotation, which includes a crop that is competitive with Persian darnel, could improve management of the weed species, as well as other aspects of crop production. Through this study we will identify crops that compete well with Persian darnel and are adapted to the cropping systems of Montana.
This study is investigating the effects of three crop species at three different seeding rates, with spatial variation in weed density, following a spring wheat crop in 1999. The crop species include sunflower, spring wheat, canola, and Persian darnel- infested fallow.
Sunflower (Cenex 803):
Warm season crop, 5 to 6 ft rooting depth, and relatively open canopy
Seeded to establish 15,000 22,500, and 30,000 plants per acre
Canola (Hyola 308):
Cool season crop, 4 ft rooting depth, and enclosed canopy
Seeded to establish 242,811, 364,216, and 485,622 plants per acre (60, 90, and
120 plants per m2)
Spring Wheat (McNeal):
Included as the standard crop
Cool season, 4 ft rooting depth, and a moderately enclosed canopy
Seeded to establish 500,000, 1,000,000, and 1,500,000 plants per acre (60, 90,
and 120 lbs. per acre)