Principles and Practices of Weed Management

Contents: Preface. 1. Introduction, harmful effects and uses of weeds. 2. Current and future challenges in weed science. 3. Classification, propagation, dissemination and persistence of weeds. 4. Weed seedbank. 5. Weed biology and ecology, crop-weed association, crop-weed competition and allelopathy. 6. Concept of weed prevention, eradication, control and management and methods of weed control. 7. Integrated weed management. 8. Herbicide classification, formulations and methods of application. 9. Structure and functional features of herbicides. 10. Adjuvants. 11. Safeners. 12. Herbicide availability as the action sites in plants. 13. Mode of action of herbicides. 14. Herbicide selectivity. 15. Compatibility of herbicides with other agro-chemicals. 16. Phytotoxicity and diagnosis of herbicide injury. 17. Fate of herbicides ion soil. 18. Management of herbicides residue. 19. Herbicide bioassays. 20. Weed management in major field crops and vegetables. 21. Weed control in orchards, plantations, grasslands and lawns and non-selective control of weedy vegetation. 22. Major aquatic and problematic weeds and their control. 23. Bioherbicides. 24. Herbicide resistance. 25. Transgenic herbicides-resistant crops. 26. Herbicides residues in soil, water, plants and non-target organisms. 27. Analytical techniques for herbicides residues in food. 28. Recognition and management of herbicide poisoning. References. Appendices. Weeds are perhaps the most underestimated crop pests in tropical agriculture, although they cause severe reduction/loss in the yields of crop (37% of the total annual loss of agricultural produce) when uncontrolled. Weeds pose serious problems to agriculture and environment. Weeds are competitive and have great adaptation capacity to adverse and diverse environments. Weed science research is currently experiencing unprecedented challenges as well as prospects. Management of invasive alien weeds, indiscriminate use of herbicides, herbicide resistance in weeds, herbicidal toxicity to succeeding crops and environment, threat to native biodiversity, and weed shift are the new challenges in the field of weed management. Successful weed management in organic farming, conservation agriculture and natural farming are new areas drawing attention of researchers. Thus, weed science is increasingly becoming an interesting field for the researchers. …