Cultural Practices and Mechanical Weed Control for the Management of a Low-Diversity Weed Community in Spinach

Ioannis Gazoulis,Nikolaos Antonopoulos,Panagiotis Kanatas

doi:10.3390/d13120616

Ioannis Gazoulis, Nikolaos Antonopoulos + Show 1 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/d13120616

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Abstract

Low-diversity weed communities are dominated by few species that are highly competitive to crops. The management of such weed communities should rely upon sustainable cultural and non-chemical practices, especially in crops such as spinach (Spinacia oleracea L.), where very few herbicides are available. A two-year field trial (2020 and 2021) was conducted to evaluate different fertilization practices (broadcast and banded), intra-row spacings (15 cm, 11 cm, 7 cm), and mechanical weed control treatments (untreated, one treatment, two treatments) for the management of a low-diversity weed community in spinach. Weed competition severely affected spinach commercial biomass (R2 = 0.845). Compared to broadcast fertilization, banded fertilization reduced weed biomass and improved spinach yield and nitrogen use efficiency. Narrow intra-row spacing (7-cm) reduced weed biomass by 28 and 45% compared to intra-row spacings of 11-cm and 15-cm, respectively. Two mechanical weed control treatments resulted in 49% lower weed biomass compared to a single treatment. Commercial biomass increased with decreasing intra-row spacing (R2 = 0.881) and increasing the number of mechanical treatments (R2 = 0.911). More cultural and non-chemical practices should be evaluated for weed management in spinach, especially at sites infested with low-diversity weed communities.

Highlights

Spinach (Spinacia oleracea L.; 2n = 2x = 12) belongs to the botanical family Amaranthaceae and is considered one of the most important leafy vegetables consumed in all continents of the world [1]
S. viridis biomass was affected by the different fertilization practices in the first (p-Value ≤ 0.01) and the second evaluation (p-Value ≤ 0.05)
Significant were the effects of intra-row spacing and mechanical weed control on the biomass of both S. viridis and C. album (p-Value ≤ 0.001) and on total weed biomass in both evaluations (Table 2)

Summary

Introduction

Spinach (Spinacia oleracea L.; 2n = 2x = 12) belongs to the botanical family Amaranthaceae and is considered one of the most important leafy vegetables consumed in all continents of the world [1]. In Europe, spinach production reached about 700 thousand tonnes, harvested on about 41 thousand hectares in 2019 [2]. It is a valuable food source for human nutrition as its leaves are rich in minerals, vitamins, and other molecules with antioxidant properties and phenolic compounds [3]. Mature leaves can be consumed fresh or stored frozen after cooking in boiling water; cultivation can be directed towards the production of processed spinach or fresh-cut baby leaves [4,5,6]. There are hybrids and cultivars that are resistant to bolting, higher temperatures, and longer photoperiods and are a viable option for summer cultivation [8]

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