This is a preprint, a preliminary version of a manuscript that has not completed peer review at a journal. Research Square does not conduct peer review prior to posting preprints. The posting of a preprint on this server should not be interpreted as an endorsement of its validity or suitability for dissemination as established information or for guiding clinical practice.
Research article
Alaa M.M.A. Mahgoub
Corresponding Author
License:
This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License. Read Full License
The studying of the performance of weeds and weed assemblages associated with different crops through phytosociological researches derives its importance mainly from weeds adverse impact on crop productivity. Hopefully, the current study is beneficial for developing a sustainable long term weed control and soil management strategy. The objective of the present work is to measure three ecological preferences: crop diversification, soil type and crop seasonality. A sample area was selected comprising farmland of Nile Delta and its adjoining east and west territories, Egypt. Sixty-four sites in 12 governorates comprising 30 agroecosystems were monitored. 150 species were designated as most influential weed-species out of 555 species recorded. Ecological preference for species for crop seasonality was evident through the results of Agglomerative hierarchical clustering (AHC). Three weed communities or weed assemblages’ groups (WAG) were identified. Their diversity evaluated and their linear correlation strength was determined. The fidelity measurements showed that 60-species have fidelity to WAG A; 46 to WAG B; 44 to WAG C. Measuring the ecological preference of species for crop diversification and soil type indicated that the growth activity of 36-species was more affected by crop diversification; 63-species preferential for growth in fine grained soil (FGS) and 87-species in coarse grained soil (CGS). By employing Redundancy analysis (RDA) with variation partitioning (VP), the variability in species frequency in WAG that can be explained by ecological preference of species for the three ecological preferences was determined and variation was partialized out to estimate their partial, linear effect. In fact, weed control is a recalcitrant issue and the current study revealed that a portion of the solution is in a successful crop diversification plan. The successful selection for a competitive crop that can be taken seriously as an adequate weed controlling mechanism in a crop rotation technique will cause the strongest population reduction of harmful weeds on infested farmland, especially in relevance for crops grown for organic certification.
Keywords
weeds, ecological preference, crop productivity
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
Figure 4
This is a list of supplementary files associated with this preprint. Click to download.
Loading...
Badges
Prescreen
This manuscript passed our Prescreen assessment
Complete author information
Appropriate declaration statements
Potential risks to human health
Prescreen
History
CURRENT STATUS: Posted
Version 1
Posted 22 Jun, 2020
Community comments: 1
Metrics
Comments: 0
PDF Downloads: ...
HTML Views: ...
Subject Areas
Botany
Learn more about our company.
This is a preprint, a preliminary version of a manuscript that has not completed peer review at a journal. Research Square does not conduct peer review prior to posting preprints. The posting of a preprint on this server should not be interpreted as an endorsement of its validity or suitability for dissemination as established information or for guiding clinical practice.
Research article
Alaa M.M.A. Mahgoub
Corresponding Author
Badges
Prescreen
This manuscript passed our Prescreen assessment
Complete author information
Appropriate declaration statements
Potential risks to human health
Prescreen
History
CURRENT STATUS: Posted
Version 1
Posted 22 Jun, 2020
Community comments: 1
Metrics
Comments: 0
PDF Downloads: ...
HTML Views: ...
Subject Areas
Botany
License:
This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License. Read Full License
The studying of the performance of weeds and weed assemblages associated with different crops through phytosociological researches derives its importance mainly from weeds adverse impact on crop productivity. Hopefully, the current study is beneficial for developing a sustainable long term weed control and soil management strategy. The objective of the present work is to measure three ecological preferences: crop diversification, soil type and crop seasonality. A sample area was selected comprising farmland of Nile Delta and its adjoining east and west territories, Egypt. Sixty-four sites in 12 governorates comprising 30 agroecosystems were monitored. 150 species were designated as most influential weed-species out of 555 species recorded. Ecological preference for species for crop seasonality was evident through the results of Agglomerative hierarchical clustering (AHC). Three weed communities or weed assemblages’ groups (WAG) were identified. Their diversity evaluated and their linear correlation strength was determined. The fidelity measurements showed that 60-species have fidelity to WAG A; 46 to WAG B; 44 to WAG C. Measuring the ecological preference of species for crop diversification and soil type indicated that the growth activity of 36-species was more affected by crop diversification; 63-species preferential for growth in fine grained soil (FGS) and 87-species in coarse grained soil (CGS). By employing Redundancy analysis (RDA) with variation partitioning (VP), the variability in species frequency in WAG that can be explained by ecological preference of species for the three ecological preferences was determined and variation was partialized out to estimate their partial, linear effect. In fact, weed control is a recalcitrant issue and the current study revealed that a portion of the solution is in a successful crop diversification plan. The successful selection for a competitive crop that can be taken seriously as an adequate weed controlling mechanism in a crop rotation technique will cause the strongest population reduction of harmful weeds on infested farmland, especially in relevance for crops grown for organic certification.
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
Figure 4
This is a list of supplementary files associated with this preprint. Click to download.
Loading...