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Weeds have serious impacts on agricultural produce. Weeds do not only reduce the yield but also impact the cost of the yield by reducing its quality. Yield losses due to weeds can usually be more than those from pests and diseases. This loss caused due to weed infestation varies with the crops. Weeds compete with crops for water, soil, nutrients, light, and space and thus become the reason for the deficiency of nutrients and other essential components in the crop. Invasive weeds can outgrow crop plants and deprive the crops of important nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, magnesium, calcium, sulphur, boron, copper, zinc, molybdenum, manganese, and iron, among others. Weeds make mechanical sowing a difficult process, leading to increased expenditure on labour, equipment, and chemicals for their removal.
What are some of the most commonly found weeds?
Examples of some of the commonly found weeds in India are crabgrass, purslane, lambs quarters, pigweed, chickweed, dandelion, shepherd’s purse, creeping charlie, etc. Some weeds are easily manageable, but some may require different removal methods. Weeds can be removed manually or by using some chemicals. The method that you choose to remove the weed depends on its type.
What are the harmful effects of weed?
Weeds can cause health hazards to humans and animals. Health problems caused by weeds in humans include hay fever, asthma, dermatitis, itching, inflammation, sleeping sickness, etc. If milk-yielding animals somehow end up eating weed, it can lead to disorders, deformities or even death of the livestock. The presence of weeds hinders the process of irrigation. It reduces the value of products or adds the cost of clearing it out. Weeds harbour pests, pathogens and parasites, which can reduce the value of the land. The presence of weeds can ruin the purity of a plant by increasing the chances of cross-pollination. Some toxins released by weeds into the soil can be poisonous to crop plants. In the case of aquatic plants, the dense growth of aquatic weeds pollutes water by deoxygenating it and killing the fish.
How to get rid of weeds?
Some weeds produce tens of thousands of seeds from a single plant, multiplying your weed control problems. When weeds are young, just pull them out or cut them off below the soil line. Keep your digging shallow, so you don’t bring new weed seeds to the surface. Weeds are easy to remove when the ground is moist. Clean your tools when you move from one area of the land to another to avoid spreading the weed seeds. Do not leave pulled weeds on the surface always discard them in the trash. By tiling, weeds can be removed by uprooting or killing them before sowing the seeds. If you dig out and pull out these weeds, it is suggested to wait until the soil is moist, and grip the lower part of the stem to avoid breaking it off. Herbicides, also known as weed killers, can remove weeds. Herbicides work in a way in which the crop plants are left unharmed, and only weeds are deeply affected. Modern herbicides can prevent toxicity and contamination of groundwater. Weedicides such as neem extract, isoproturon, ethyl ester and glyphosate are some commonly used organic products to get rid of weeds. Another method is to apply a layer of mulch. Weed seeds have a harder time pushing through the mulch, which blocks sunlight. Mulch is a layer of material applied to the surface of soil it helps conserve soil moisture. Be careful not to over-fertilize or under-fertilize your crop because that will promote weed growth.
How to prevent damage to crops?
Rotating crops allow you to conserve nutrients in the soil. It also helps to prevent diseases from spreading among plants. The impacts of weeds are reduced during crop rotation. The annual weeds and the late emerging weeds are disturbed, which helps control weed infestations. The height of the weed becomes the deciding factor in determining when to apply herbicides. To prevent or delay the onset of the growth of weeds, crops can be planted in a narrower fashion to reduce competition between plants and weeds.
Based on your farm practices and crop type, you can reduce the growth of weeds in your plants. The key is to keep yourself well-informed and use organic farming products to maintain your crops’ quality and growth.
