Emilie E. Regnier

Competition and fecundity of giant ragweed in corn

Abstract A field study was conducted to determine the effects of giant ragweed emergence time and population density on corn grain yield, giant ragweed seed production, and giant ragweed predispersal seed losses. When weeds and crop emerged concurrently, hyperbolic regression of percent corn yield loss on giant ragweed population densities of 1.7, 6.9, and 13.8 weeds per 10 m2 gave a predicted loss rate of 13.6% for the first weed per 10 m2 in the linear response range at low densities and a maximum yield loss of 90% at high weed densities. Crop yield loss response to weed density was linear when giant ragweed emerged 4 wk after corn, and the regression coefficient indicated a yield loss rate of 1% per unit increase in weed density. A larger proportion of the variation in corn yield loss was explained by weed density (r2 = 0.99) than by weed biomass (r2 = 0.81). There was a positive linear relationship between giant ragweed seed production and weed density at each weed emergence time. When giant ragweed emerged with corn, regression equations for 1997 and 1998 gave a predicted seed rain of 146 and 238 seeds m−2 per unit increase in weed density, respectively. In both years when giant ragweed emerged 4 wk after corn, predicted seed rain was 16 seeds m−2 per unit increase in weed density. Viability of total giant ragweed seed was 56 and 38% in 1997 and 1998, respectively, and was not affected by weed emergence time or weed density. Feeding by insect larvae accounted for 13 to 19% of giant ragweed seed viability losses. Granivorous insects infesting giant ragweed seed were identified as a fruit fly (Diptera: Tephritidae), two weevils (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), and a moth (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae). Nomenclature: Fruit fly, Euaresta festiva (Loew); moth, Chionodes mediofuscella; weevil, Smicronyx flavicans and Conotrachelus geminatus; corn, Zea mays L.; giant ragweed, Ambrosia trifida L. AMBTR.

Weed Suppression in Spring-Sown Rye (Secale cereale)–Pea (Pisum sativum) Cover Crop Mixes1

Abstract: Field trials were conducted with spring-sown rye and field pea cover crops to determine the effect of five rye–pea proportions and three seeding rates (high, medium, and low) on weed suppression during cover crop growth. Measurements on weed and cover crop growth were taken approximately 2 mo after seeding when cover crops were killed. Cover crops were killed by mowing in 1996 and by undercutting in 1997 and 1998. Cover crop biomass, averaged over rye–pea proportion, was highest in 1998 at 4.3 million tons (MT)/ha (high seeding rate) and lowest in 1997 at 1.5 MT/ha (low seeding rate). Cover crops of pure rye or rye–pea mixes suppressed weeds more effectively than did pure pea. Dominant weeds were ladysthumb, smooth pigweed, smallflower galinsoga, and common lambsquarters. Ground cover by weeds ranged from a low of 2% (rye–pea mixes) to a maximum of 73% (pure pea). Cover crop mixes of 50% or more rye seeded at the high rate gave the best weed suppression. Nomenclature: Ladysthumb, Polygonum persicaria L. #3 POLPE; smooth pigweed, Amaranthus hybridus L. # AMACH; smallflower galinsoga, Galinsoga parviflora Cav. # GASPA; common lambsquarters, Chenopodium album L. # CHEAL; field pea, Pisum sativum L.; rye, Secale cereale L. ‘Wheeler’. Additional index words: Allelopathy, mixed cropping, undercutting, AMACH, CHEAL, GASPA, POLPE. Abbreviations: DAS, days after seeding.

Postdispersal predation of giant ragweed (Ambrosia trifida) seed in no-tillage corn

Abstract Giant ragweed seeds have high nutritional value, consisting of 47% crude protein and 38% crude fat, and may be an important food source for rodent and invertebrate populations in agricultural and early successional ecosystems. We investigated temporal patterns of postdispersal giant ragweed seed predation on the soil surface of a no-tillage cornfield as affected by involucre (seed dispersal unit) size and presence or absence of crop residue. Cage exclusion experiments indicated that rodents and invertebrates were the principal predators of giant ragweed seed, and total predation of involucres over a 12-mo period beginning in November was 88%. Rodents were the greatest predators of giant ragweed involucres during fall and winter, and cumulative predation by February 1 in treatments with rodent access ranged from 39 to 43%. In contrast, giant ragweed involucre predation by invertebrates occurred mainly from May 1 to November 1. When rodent access to involucres was prevented, total involucre predation by invertebrates over a 12-mo period ranged from 57 to 78%. Rodents showed an initial preference for large involucres (> 4.8-mm diameter), and invertebrates preferred small involucres (< 4.8-mm diameter). Involucres covered with corn plant residue underwent less predation by rodents from November to February than uncovered involucres, but residue cover had no effect on seed predation by invertebrates. In a laboratory feeding trial, the carabid Harpalus pensylvanicus preferred seed of smooth pigweed and yellow foxtail to giant ragweed seed, suggesting that giant ragweed seed is an incidental rather than a preferred food source for some carabids. Because giant ragweed exhibits relatively low fecundity and short seed bank persistence, results of this study suggest that postdispersal predation may directly reduce giant ragweed recruitment the next year by reducing new seed bank inputs. However, seed losses from predation alone may be insufficient to maintain giant ragweed populations below economic threshold levels in no-tillage cornfields. Nomenclature: Giant ragweed, Ambrosia trifida L. AMBTR; smooth pigweed, Amaranthus hybridus L. AMACH; yellow foxtail, Setaria glauca L. Beauv. SETLU; corn, Zea mays L. ‘DK 595’.

Seed Size and Burial Effects on Giant Ragweed (Ambrosia trifida) Emergence and Seed Demise

Abstract Giant ragweed is a competitive, allergenic weed that persists in agricultural fields and early successional sites. Field experiments were conducted to determine the effects of seed size and seed burial depth on giant ragweed emergence and seed demise. In a seedling emergence experiment, small (< 4.8 mm in diameter) and large (> 6.6 mm in diameter) seeds were buried 0, 5, 10, and 20 cm in fall 1997, and weed emergence was monitored over the next seven growing seasons. A generalized linear mixed model fit to the cumulative emergence data showed that maximum emergence for both seed sizes occurred at the 5-cm burial depth, where probability of emergence was 19% for small seeds and 49% for large seeds. Emergence probability at the 10-cm burial depth was 9% for small seeds and 30% for large seeds, and no seedlings emerged from the 20-cm burial depth. The model predicted that ≥ 98% of total cumulative emergence was completed after four growing seasons for large seeds buried 5 cm, five growing seasons for small seeds buried 5 cm and large seeds buried 10 cm, and seven growing seasons for small seeds buried 10 cm. Seed size and burial treatment effects on seed demise were tested in a second experiment using seed packets. Rates of seed demise were inversely proportional to burial depth, and the percentage of viable seeds remaining after 4 yr ranged from 0% on the soil surface to 19% at the 20-cm burial depth. Some seeds recovered from the 20-cm burial depth were viable after 9 yr of burial. These results, coupled with previous research, suggest that seed size polymorphism facilitates giant ragweed adaptation across habitats and that a combination of no-tillage cropping practices, habitat modification, and timely weed control measures can reduce its active seed bank in agricultural fields by 90% or more after 4 yr. Nomenclature: Giant ragweed, Ambrosia trifida L. AMBTR.

A Hydrothermal Seedling Emergence Model for Giant Ragweed (Ambrosia trifida)

Abstract Late-season giant ragweed emergence in Ohio crop fields complicates decisions concerning the optimum time to implement control measures. Our objectives were to develop a hydrothermal time emergence model for a late-emerging biotype and validate the model in a variety of locations and burial environments. To develop the model, giant ragweed seedlings were counted and removed weekly each growing season from 2000 to 2003 in a fallow field located in west central Ohio. Weather data, soil characteristics and geographic location were used to predict soil thermal and moisture conditions with the Soil Temperature and Moisture Model (STM2). Hydrothermal time (θHT) initiated March 1 and base values were extrapolated from the literature (Tb = 2 C, ψb = −10 MPa). Cumulative percent emergence initially increased rapidly and reached 60% of maximum by late April (approximately 400 θHT), leveled off for a period in May, and increased again at a lower rate before concluding in late July (approximately 2,300 θHT). The period in May when few seedlings emerged was not subject to soil temperatures or water potentials less than the θHT base values. The biphasic pattern of emergence was modeled with two successive Weibull models that were validated in 2005 in a tilled and a no-tillage environment and in 2006 at a separate location in a no-tillage environment. Root-mean-square values for comparing actual and model predicted cumulative emergence values ranged from 8.0 to 9.5%, indicating a high degree of accuracy. This experiment demonstrated an approach to emergence modeling that can be used to forecast emergence on a local basis according to weed biotype and easily obtainable soil and weather data. Nomenclature: Giant ragweed, Ambrosia trifida L.

Response of Horseweed Biotypes to Foliar Applications of Cloransulam-methyl and Glyphosate1

Studies were conducted from 2001 through 2003 to determine the extent of resistance to acetolactate synthase (ALS) inhibitors and glyphosate in Ohio horseweed biotypes. The response of 66 horseweed biotypes to cloransulam-methyl and glyphosate was determined in the greenhouse. Application of 0.07 kg ai cloransulam/ha reduced plant biomass by less than 60% for 38 of the 66 biotypes. Application of 3.4 kg ae glyphosate/ha reduced biomass by at least 80% for the 51 biotypes collected in 2001, but biomass was similar to that of nontreated plants for 11 of the 15 populations collected in 2002. A dose–response study was conducted with selected biotypes, and a nonlinear, logistic dose–response curve was fit to the data to calculate the herbicide dose required to reduce fresh weight 50% (GR50). On the basis of GR50 values, the resistance ratio (R/S) for two ALS-resistant biotypes was 34 and 943 for chlorimuron-ethyl and 32 and 168 for cloransulam, respectively. The R/S ratio for two glyphosate-resistant biotypes was 33 and 39. Results of these studies indicate that, in 2002, ALS-resistant horseweed was widespread throughout Ohio, whereas resistance to glyphosate occurred primarily in several counties in southwestern Ohio. Nomenclature: Chlorimuron-ethyl; cloransulam-methyl; glyphosate; horseweed, Conyza canadensis (L.) Cronq. #3 ERICA. Additional index words: Acetolactate synthase, herbicide resistance. Abbreviations: ALS, acetolactate synthase; GR50, herbicide dose required to reduce fresh weight 50%; R/S, resistance ratio.

Computer image analysis and classification of giant ragweed seeds

Abstract Giant ragweed exhibits a high degree of polymorphism among individual plants in seed size, shape, spininess, and color. These features may play an important role in giant ragweed seed survival and predation avoidance; however, they are difficult to evaluate because of lack of quantification methods. A computer imaging technique was developed for describing and classifying giant ragweed seeds using digital images of the seed top and side views. Seed samples collected from 20 different giant ragweed plants (classes) were mounted and digitally scanned. Quantitative features were extracted from the seed images, including color, width, height, area, and seed perimeter. A polygon (convex hull) of the seed image based on the seed outline was constructed, from which spininess indices were developed. Fishers linear discriminant with normalized nearest neighbor classification was used to classify randomly selected images of individual seeds according to class (maternal origin), using the extracted features as a database. The best classification rate achieved was 99%, with 138 out of 140 seeds correctly matched using data from both the top and side views. Seed features were easily extracted and varied from 1.2- to 4.5-fold among classes. Area and perimeter measurements varied least within classes but varied most among classes, suggesting that these features discriminate effectively among seeds from different plants in giant ragweed. Convex hull area : seed area ratio, using the seed top view images, was the best index of seed spininess, aligning well with visual assessment and providing greatest discrimination among classes. This experiment shows that in the case of giant ragweed, seeds from different plants are distinguishable in an objective and quantitative manner. This imaging technique can be applied to identification of seeds from different species and to studies on variable seed morphology within a species. Nomenclature: Giant ragweed, Ambrosia trifida L. AMBTR.

Response of ALS-Resistant Common Ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia) and Giant Ragweed (Ambrosia trifida) to ALS-Inhibiting and Alternative Herbicides

Abstract: Three studies were conducted in 1999 and 2000 to determine whether acetolactate synthase (ALS)–resistant common ragweed and giant ragweed biotypes were present in Ohio. Results of field studies indicated that biotypes of both species had cross-resistance to three chemical families of ALS-inhibiting herbicides. Cloransulam-methyl applied postemergence at 9, 18, and 36 g/ha controlled more than 85% of two susceptible populations of common and giant ragweed 28 d after treatment, whereas less than 35% control of resistant populations was achieved at the same rates. Fomesafen, lactofen, and glyphosate applied alone at the recommended rates provided the most effective control of ALS-resistant common and giant ragweed. Mixtures of cloransulam-methyl with either fomesafen or lactofen did not significantly increase ALS-resistant common and giant ragweed control compared with each diphenylether herbicide used alone. Dose–response bioassays conducted in the greenhouse indicated that susceptible common and giant ragweed tended to be more sensitive to cloransulam-methyl and chlorimuron than to imazamox. ALS-resistant common ragweed demonstrated a high level of resistance to all the herbicides tested because GR50 values were not reached with rates 1,000 times higher than the recommended rate. ALS-resistant giant ragweed treated with 13,000 g/ha of chlorimuron and 18,000 g/ha of cloransulam-methyl was not inhibited enough to obtain a GR50 value, thus also demonstrating a high level of resistance. The GR50 for ALS-resistant giant ragweed treated with imazamox was 1,161 g/ha. Results of these studies confirmed the presence of ALS–cross-resistant populations of common and giant ragweed in Ohio and suggest that herbicides with different mechanisms of action will be required to manage these weeds effectively. Nomenclature: Chlorimuron; cloransulam-methyl; fomesafen; glyphosate; imazamox; lactofen; common ragweed, Ambrosia artemisiifolia L. #3 AMBEL; giant ragweed, Ambrosia trifida L. # AMBTR. Additional index words: Acetolactate synthase, herbicide resistance. Abbreviations: ALS, acetolactate synthase; COC, crop oil concentrate; DAT, days after treatment; NIS, nonionic surfactant; POST, postemergence; PPF, photosynthetic photon flux; PRE, preemergence; UAN, urea ammonium nitrate; 1× rate, the recommended label rate; 2× rate, twice the recommended label rate.

Seed Dormancy and Adaptive Seedling Emergence Timing in Giant Ragweed (Ambrosia trifida)

Abstract Giant ragweed germination is delayed by both a physiological dormancy of the embryo (embryo dormancy) and an inhibitory influence of embryo-covering structures (covering structure-enforced [CSE] dormancy). To clarify the roles of embryo and CSE dormancy in giant ragweed seedling emergence timing, we conducted two experiments to address the following objectives: (1) determine changes in germinability for giant ragweed dispersal units (hereafter “involucres”) and their components under natural burial conditions, and (2) compare embryo and CSE dormancy alleviation and emergence periodicity between successional and agricultural populations. In Experiment 1, involucres were buried in crop fields at Columbus, OH, periodically excavated, and brought to the laboratory for dissection. Involucres, achenes, and embryos were then subjected to germination assays at 20 C. In Experiment 2, temporal patterns of seedling emergence were determined at a common burial site. Reductions in embryo and CSE dormancy were compared with controlled-environment stratification followed by germination assays at 12 and 20 C, temperatures representative of soil conditions in spring and summer. Results indicated that overwinter dormancy loss involved sequential reductions in embryo and CSE dormancy. CSE dormancy, which may limit potential for fatal germination during fall, was caused by the pericarp and/or embryo-covering structures within the pericarp. In Experiment 2, successional populations emerged synchronously in early spring, whereas agricultural populations emerged throughout the growing season. Levels of embryo dormancy were greater in the agricultural populations than the successional populations, but CSE dormancy levels were similar among populations. In 12 C germination assays, embryo dormancy levels were positively correlated with time required to reach 95% cumulative emergence (run 1: r  =  0.81, P  =  0.03; run 2: r  =  0.76, P  =  0.05). These results suggest that late-season emergence in giant ragweed involves high levels of embryo dormancy that prevent germination at low temperatures in spring. Nomenclature: Giant ragweed, Ambrosia trifida L. AMBTR.

Certified Crop Advisors’ Perceptions of Giant Ragweed (Ambrosia trifida) Distribution, Herbicide Resistance, and Management in the Corn Belt

Abstract Giant ragweed has been increasing as a major weed of row crops in the last 30 yr, but quantitative data regarding its pattern and mechanisms of spread in crop fields are lacking. To address this gap, we conducted a Web-based survey of certified crop advisors in the U.S. Corn Belt and Ontario, Canada. Participants were asked questions regarding giant ragweed and crop production practices for the county of their choice. Responses were mapped and correlation analyses were conducted among the responses to determine factors associated with giant ragweed populations. Respondents rated giant ragweed as the most or one of the most difficult weeds to manage in 45% of 421 U.S. counties responding, and 57% of responding counties reported giant ragweed populations with herbicide resistance to acetolactate synthase inhibitors, glyphosate, or both herbicides. Results suggest that giant ragweed is increasing in crop fields outward from the east-central U.S. Corn Belt in most directions. Crop production practices associated with giant ragweed populations included minimum tillage, continuous soybean, and multiple-application herbicide programs; ecological factors included giant ragweed presence in noncrop edge habitats, early and prolonged emergence, and presence of the seed-burying common earthworm in crop fields. Managing giant ragweed in noncrop areas could reduce giant ragweed migration from noncrop habitats into crop fields and slow its spread. Where giant ragweed is already established in crop fields, including a more diverse combination of crop species, tillage practices, and herbicide sites of action will be critical to reduce populations, disrupt emergence patterns, and select against herbicide-resistant giant ragweed genotypes. Incorporation of a cereal grain into the crop rotation may help suppress early giant ragweed emergence and provide chemical or mechanical control options for late-emerging giant ragweed. Nomenclature: Glyphosate; giant ragweed; Ambrosia trifida L. AMBTR; common earthworm; Lumbricus terrestris L.; corn; Zea mays L.; soybean, Glycine max (L.) Merr.