Between-Observer Differences in Relative Corn Yield vs. Rated Weed Control

Abstract

Crop yield and weed control rating have been used to measure weed and crop response to weed management treatments, eliminate unacceptable weed management treatments, and select “best” treatments for recommendation to farmers. However, the mathematical relationship between crop yield and rated weed control has not been reported before from such treated screening experiments. Likewise, differences have not been reported before in rated weed control among experienced observers (i.e., reliability) when rating the same experiments and for an experienced observer over time (i.e., repeatability). Data from published experiments on zone herbicide application in field corn in which weeds reduced yield to various amounts were reanalyzed to examine these issues. For this study, relative corn yield was calculated as a percentage of the 1× broadcast herbicide rate for two observers and either three experimental site-years or their average. For observer A, relative corn yield (%) increased linearly as rated total weed control (%) increased for all 3 site-yr and their average. For observer B, equations were curvilinear in 2 of 3 site-yr. For both observers, equations accounted for little data variability in relative corn yield (r2= 0.25 and 0.25 in site-year 1, respectively, 0.38 and 0.36 in site-year 2, 0.58 and 0.57 in site-year 3, and 0.43 and 0.42 for their average). When rated total weed control by observer A was graphed against that of observer B, the relationship was a nearly ideal 1:1 linear relationship in only 1 of 3 site-yr. In two other site-years, equations were nonlinear, indicating that one observer distinguished smaller differences between treatments at lower rated control than the other observer. Between-row total weed cover and in-row total weed height influenced observer weed control rating.