—Lancaster Farming, Saturday, March 3. 1973
14
Nutsedge Control Shown
In Soil Fumigation
Soil fumigation has been an
accepted practice for about 20
years among nurserymen who
desire healthy ornamental and
strawberry plants that are free of
soil-borne disease and insects.
Now horticultural research
workers associated with the
University of Maryland at
College Park have shown that soil
fumigation each fall at sufficient
rates and proper soil tem
peratures also can control yellow
nut sedge—-a pesky perennial
weed—in the following growing
season
Research findings to support
this conclusion were formally
presented in a technical paper by
Dr C Edward Beste, Extension
horticultural weed specialist for
Fertilizing Forage Crops
Reduces Weed Problems
Increasing the competition of
forage species through adequate
fertilization is frequently
overlooked as a means of weed
control, reports E J Peters,
USDA agronomist at the
University of Missouri. He spoke
at the Weed Science Society of
America meetings in Atlanta.
Weeds come into pastures
because the existing vegetation is
thin and low in vigor so that
weeds come into the bare areas
between forage plants On many
pastures weeds can be killed with
herbicides but new weeds will
ATTENTION
DAIRY FARMERS!
WE ARE EQUIPPED TO PAINT ALL YOUR BUILDINGS
INCLUDING SPECIAL COATING FOR YOUR MILK
PARLORS.
FREE ESTIMATES GIVEN
DAN HERSHEY
MILLERSVILLE, PENNA.
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the University of Maryland. Dr.
Beste spoke at a morning session
during the 13th annual meeting of
the Weed Science Society of
America.
His published report represents
the finale of a three-year study
begun by the late C. Dwain
Altman, also an Extension
horticultural weed specialist, at
the University of Maryland’s
vegetable research farm west of
Salisbury Altman’s project was
promoted by observations from
fumigation studies involving soil
borne diseases, conducted by Dr
James C. Kantzes, Extension
plant pathologist at the Eastern
Shore location.
The Beste-Altman study in-
come up unless the sod is thick
enough to prevent the new weeds
from growing.
“In our research we applied
fertilizizers and showed that we
could increase the density of
forage grasses and legumes to
the degree that annual weed
infestations could be reduced,”
Peters said.
Fertilization had little effect on
the density of perennial weeds
that were already established
when the fertilization program
began Herbicides used with
fertilizers were most effective in
controlling weeds.
Study
volved three commercial
fumigants, bearing the trade
names Vorlex, Telone C and DD
PIC. It showed that com
mercially acceptable yellow
nutsedge control was obtained
with Vorlex at 30 gallons per
acre, and with Telone C or DD
PIC at 40 gallons per acre applied
in the fall.
Effectiveness of nutsedge.
control with all three fumigants
wes reduced measurably as soil
temperatures at the six-inch
depth fell from 50 degrees F. to 40
degrees F. at the time of
fumigation.
Effectiveness of Vorlex in
controlling nutsedge, for in
stance, dropped off from 80
percent to only 20 percent with a
10-degree drop in soil tem
perature at the six-inch depth.
The other two commercial
fumigants each showed an ef
fectiveness drop from 80 percent
to 60 percent for nutsedge control
under identical temperature
conditions in the Maryland study.
Since cultural practices for the
light soils on Maryland’s lower
Eastern Shore, along with nor
mal seasonal workloads, dictate
that sorl/umigation be done in the
fall, Dr. Beste concluded that the
should be applied; in
October. This timing would
normally allow at least two
weeks with soil temperatures of
50 degrees F. oh more at the six
inch depth
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