market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org
Subject: Market Farming
List archive
Re: [Market-farming] Controling quackgrass organically?
- From: "Susan Houghton" <susangivingtree AT earthlink.net>
- To: "Market Farming" <market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org>
- Subject: Re: [Market-farming] Controling quackgrass organically?
- Date: Thu, 3 Apr 2008 09:57:37 -0400
Hey Vicki, can you get a "pre-copy" of this ? Even
if you can't it would be a valuable resource for us when it is
published.
Susan
> From: stevegilman AT verizon.net > Date: Wed, 2 Apr 2008 07:37:11 -0400 > To: market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org > Subject: Re: [Market-farming] Controling quackgrass organically? > > Hi Martin, > I'm fortunate to be part of a SARE Ecological Weed Management > project led by Dr Charles Mohler at Cornell. What's below is small > part of a presentation I gave at the Long Island Ag Forum this winter > -- and I'll have an expanded version that I'm presenting at this > summer's NOFA Conference in August in Mass. > > A comprehensive manual is slated to be published in late 2009 by SAN > after extensive review from workshop presentations -- its working > title is: “Manage Weeds on Your Farm: A Guide to Ecological > Strategies” and is co-authored with Toni DiTommaso, who is also in > the department of Crop and Soil Sciences at Cornell University. An > entire section is concerned with how to think about weeds, along with > successful cultural management practices of how to deal with them. > > At root, an organic-ecological approach to managing weeds uses an > understanding of the biology of weeds to outsmart them by exploiting > their weaknesses. This is therefore an information-rich rather than > an input-intensive approach. Some of the precepts are quite easily > grasped, while the deeper-down management paradigm shift may require > some considerable between-the-ears adjustments. Also, this > understanding may help farmers to come up with further innovative > weed control strategies and practices. > > -- Wandering perennials such as quack grass and hedge bindweed are > often the hardest type to control. They spread by underground > rhizomes or horizontal roots, sending up daughter plants above > ground. Because they have the ability to renew themselves > vegetatively as well as produce windborne seed they can persist for > years, their clones becoming nearly immortal if left to their own > devices. > > Perennial weeds that propagate vegetatively require vastly different > strategies. Some perennial weeds may persist for years and years > because they have buds on their roots or underground stems that > sprout when the plant is damaged. The rhizomes of wandering > perennials such as quackgrass are simply thickened stems that store > nutrients horizontally underground, although they look more like > roots than stems. > > Roots and rhizomes form buds at regular intervals that remain dormant > due to hormones that are released from the growing tip of the > underground stems. As the distance between the buds and the growing > tip grows longer, the hormone concentration diminishes so that the > previously suppressed buds sprout and become a new above-ground > shoot. As anyone who has tried to tackle an area of quackgrass knows > – initial tillage a good way to rapidly increase the number of shoots > and thereby spread the plant. > > That’s because the cutting up of the roots and rhizomes by tillage > releases the buds from their hormonal suppression, causing them to > sprout. But the sprouts have less nutrient reserves to draw upon from > the segmented underground stems, and their growth is less vigorous. > And this is the key to the control of wandering perennials. The ideal > point to impact the plant is when the new emerging shoot has used up > most of the reserves of the original rhizome fragment – and before > the shoot forms new storage roots or rhizomes. With quack grass the > minimum size when the rhizome segment is at its weakest is usually > reached when the shoot has formed three leaves – and that’s the key > time for another round of tillage to finally kill the plant. > > Hope this helps, > Steve > Ruckytucks Farm > > > > > > > > > From: market-farming-bounces AT lists.ibiblio.org > > [mailto:market-farming-bounces AT lists.ibiblio.org] On Behalf Of Glen > > Eco Farm > > Sent: Tuesday, April 01, 2008 9:20 PM > > To: Market Farming > > Subject: [Market-farming] Controling quackgrass organically? > > > > > > > > I know this question has probably been asked several times before > > on this > > list but i am too busy (lazy?) to go dig it out of the archives so > > I am > > going to ask it again. Just what are certified organic farmers > > doing to > > control quackgrass? > > > > I've been spot spraying with glyphosate for a number of years now > > and I may > > as well quit because it isn't working. The stuff just keeps > > popping up all > > over the place. I lay out my crop ground in alternating strips > > with grass > > so I can have a form of crop--noncrop rotation and soil building > > with grass, > > legumes, and various perrenial weeds growing in the non crop > > areas. I keep > > these areas mowed and rotate them back to crop strips every couple > > of years. > > > > I am resolving this year to try and be a better boy by repenting of > > some of > > my past sins of using forbidden materials (even on a limited basis) > > such as > > glysophate (aka Roundup), some salt based fertilizers (side dressed or > > foliar sprayed), and some broad spectrum insecticides and > > fungicides for the > > worst infestations. It's kind of like drinking beer. One can easily > > justify drinking a little every now and then--after all beer is not > > that > > high in alcohol and it won't hurt you if you don't overdo it--right? > > Trouble is after awhile you find your self drinking more and more. > > If you > > really want to play it safe just stay away from the stuff! > > > > Of course I can go out and diligently dig it up--or cover it up > > with several > > layers of black plastic--yeah right! It's really getting itself > > established > > in the current noncrop strips and is going to be a real mess in a > > couple of > > years when I try to rotate it back to crop strips. The only thing > > I know to > > try right now is to get a better chisel plow, rip the hell out of the > > infested spots, and hope for another drought this summer. If that > > doesn't > > work I guess the next thing will be to look for another farm. > > > > Marlin Burkholder > > Shenandoah Valley > > Virginia > > > > > > > > - > _______________________________________________ > Market-farming mailing list > Market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org > http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/market-farming > Get in touch in an instant. Get Windows Live Messenger now.
|
-
[Market-farming] Controling quackgrass organically?,
Glen Eco Farm, 04/01/2008
-
Re: [Market-farming] Controlling quackgrass organically?,
Marcy, 04/02/2008
- Re: [Market-farming] Controlling quackgrass organically?, bcluton, 04/02/2008
- Re: [Market-farming] Controling quackgrass organically?, Pat Meadows, 04/02/2008
- <Possible follow-up(s)>
-
Re: [Market-farming] Controling quackgrass organically?,
STEVE GILMAN, 04/02/2008
-
Re: [Market-farming] Controling quackgrass organically?,
Shawnee Flowerfarmer, 04/02/2008
- Re: [Market-farming] Controling quackgrass organically?, Susan Houghton, 04/03/2008
-
Re: [Market-farming] Controling quackgrass organically?,
Shawnee Flowerfarmer, 04/02/2008
-
Re: [Market-farming] Controlling quackgrass organically?,
Marcy, 04/02/2008
Archive powered by MHonArc 2.6.24.