RENERIO I. DUALLO JR., L.Agr., MSc.

Associate Professor II
Surigao Del Norte State University
Mainit Campus
 Weed Science as a discipline

 Weed Science is the study of weeds and

their control. It is an off-shoot of plant
physiology having evolved from the study of
plant growth regulators.

 Its main goal is the formulation of most

effective, economical, and satisfactory
methods of controlling weeds.
 The intensive study of weeds in relation to their
control came about only after the discovery of the
herbicidal properties of 2,4-D.

 Weed science as a discipline was still in its infant

stage compared to entomology and plant
pathology.

 One possible reason for this is the impression that

one can always resort to handweeding which do
not need any scientific background.
 Definition of a weed:

 Most people define a weed as an unwanted,

undesirable or useless plants.

Various authors defined a weed as:

 A plant growing where it is not wanted

 A plant whose potentialities for harm far
outweighs its potentialities for good
 A plant whose virtues have not been discovered
 A weed is a plant unwanted at a particular time
and place.

 A weed is a plant that is successful in its struggle

for existence.

 A plant or plant part interfering with the objectives

of man in a specific situation.

 A misfit
Characteristics of Weeds

a. They have rapid vegetative growth.

 Grasses-fast and numerous tiller production
 Sedges- rapid tuber and shoot formation
 Broadleaves-fast tem elongation and leaf
formation
b. They reproduce rapidly and mature early.

c. Most weeds are very prolific and produce

abundant seeds

 Echinochloa colona 42,758 seeds

 Monochoria vaginalis 44,799 seeds
 Celosia argentea 11,312 seeds
 Rottboellia cochinchinensis 5,048 seeds
 Eleusine indica 4,899 seeds
d. They have the ability to survive and adapt to
adverse conditions
e. Propagules possess dormancy or can be induced to
become dormant under unfavorable conditions.

f. Adapted to crop competition

Advantages/Benefits from Weeds

- Alternate source of food for human

- Alternate source of feed for animals
- Source of useful compounds like growth regulators,
natural pesticides
- Some possess medicinal properties
- Enrich the soil upon decomposition
- Prevents soil erosion
- A home for beneficial organism
- Source of genes for crop improvement
- Add aesthetic value/beautification
Disadvantages/Harmful effects

- Ability to reduce crop yields when allowed to grow with

the crop during the sensitive growth stages
- Reduce the quality of farm products when
contaminated with weeds
- Reduce the quality of land
- Clog irrigation canal
- Alternate host for other pests
- Cause human ailment
- Toxic to livestock
- Compete with pollinators
CLASSIFICATION OF WEEDS
1. Based on gross morphology
a. Grass- has narrow elongated leaves with parallel
veins.
-stems are called culms
-leaves are composed of leafsheath and leaf
blade
-ligule, a membranous hairy outgrowth
between leafsheath and leaf blade is present
•resemble grasses having linear leaves with
parallel venation

b. Sedge – has narrow elongated leaves with its

distinguishing triangular stem.
- resemble grasses having linear leaves with
parallel venation
- culm triangular
- ligule absent
- indistinct nodes and internodes located at the
basal part of the culm.
- leaf sheaths fused to form a tube around the
culm forming rosette leaf arrangement
Sedges
Stem – usually solid and
triangular
Sedges
Three-ranked leaf
arrangement. Each
new leaf arises one-
third of the way
around the stem from
the one below.
Basal portion fused to
form tube around the
stem.
C. Broadleaved weeds - are characterized by more
expanded leaves. They may be monocots or dicots.
Families commonly represented are:
1. Asteraceae (Compositae) - largest family of flowering
plants.
Tropic ageratum - Ageratum conyzoides
Tridax - Tridax procumbens
Little iron weed - Vernonia cinerea
2. Euphorbiaceae - weed with milky sap
 Garden spurge - Euphorbia hirta
 Kaliskis - Euphorbia prostrata
3. Amaranthaceae - with sessile, apetalous flowers
 Spiny Amaranth - Amaranthus spinosus
 Slender amaranth - Amaranthus viridis
 Taling talingan - Celosia argentea

 4. Araceae
 Water lettuce - Pistia stratiotes
5. Sphenocleaceae
 Goose weed - Sphenoclea zeylanica
 5. Pontederiaceae
 Water hyacinth - Eichhornia crassipes
 Pickerel weed - Monochoria vaginalis
6. Papillonaceae
 Calopogonium muconoides
 Centrosema pubescens
7. Mimosaceae
 Makahiya - Mimosa pudica
 Makahiya - Mimosa invisa
8. Caesalpinaceae
 Balatong Aso - Casia tora
 Balatong Aso - Casia occidentalis
 CLASSIFICATION BASED ON MATURITY PERIOD
OR LIFE CYCLE

1. Annual weed- one that matures in one growing

season or within one year.

Ex. Barnyard grass

2. Perennial weed- one that matures in more than
one growing season or year

Exs. Purple nutsedge, Cyperus rotundus L.

Bulrush, Scirpus maritimus L.
Perennials
 CLASSIFICATION BASED ON MANNER OF
REPRODUCTION
1. Sexual weed – one that reproduces by means of
seeds or seed propagules
Ex. Small flower umbrella plant, Cyperus iria L.
Jungle rice, Echinochloa colona, (L.) Link
2. Asexual weed – one that produces by means of
vegetative propagules.
Examples of vegetative propagules are:
a. Rhizome – modified underground stem with
buds and scales

Impirata cylindrica (L.) Beauv.

b. Stolon – modified aboveground stem that creeps
and roots at the sides.

Cynodon dactylon(L.) Pers.

c. Tuber – short thickened underground stem
Exs. Purple nutsedge and bulrush
d. Off-shoot – baby plant arising from the mother
plant
Water lettuce - Pistia stratiotes L.
CLASSIFICATION BASED ON STEM GROWTH HABIT

1. Erect – Example: Itch grass,

Rottboellia cochinchinensis (Lour.) Clayton

2. Decumbent – Example: goosegrass, Eleusine indica L.

Gaertn

3. Prostrate – Example: Jungle rice, Echinochloa colona,

(L.) Link
4. Ascending – Example – Dayflowers

Commelina diffusa Bur. F. Commelina benghalensis L.

5. Crawling or creeping – Example: Bermuda grass
6. Trailing or twining – Example: 3-lobed morning glory
 CLASSIFICATION BASED ON HABITAT OR PLACE
FOR PREFERRED GROWTH
1. Wetland weed – one that grows well in lowland or
moist soil
2. Dryland weed – one that grows well in upland or drier
soil.
CLASSIFICATION BASED ON INFLORESCENSE
1. Panicle – is an inflorescence in the main axis with at
least primary and secondary branching.
- Possess numerous ascending green spikes
Echinochloa crus-galli
Poaceae (Graminae)
Erect annual grass; Prolific seed
producer. Tillers profusely, grows
throughout the year and early on
resembles rice; height up to
200cm.

Inflorescence is pinkish to purplish, occasionally green.

The lowest branches are the longest and they spread at
maturity.
2. Digitae – a compound structure whose members arise
and diverse from the same point, like the fingers of the
hand
- Has terminal whorl of 3 to 6 spikes

Smooth or slightly hairy,

prostrate to ascending
annual grass; Prolific seed
producer. Can complete
several life cycles per year.
Height -30-90cm
3. Raceme – is a more or less conical inflorescense with
flowers arising laterally from a common axis

Inflorescence consist of
paired spike-like racemes that
is firmly pressed against each
Ischaemum rogusum other, but separate when they
mature; paired spikes are
yellow-green
4. Umbel – an inflorescence in which a number of
divergent flowers arise from the same point

Inflorescence terminal
umbels subtended by two
to four leafy bracts.
 WEED ESTABLISHMENT

Ecesis – technical term for weed establishment

- Weed ecesis is largely dependent on:

1. magnitude of viable weed seed reserve in the soil;

2. weed seed germination; and

3. Competition
Weed Seed Reserve in the Soil
- Soil serves as bank depository of numerous weed
seeds
- Several studies indicated hat there are
thousands/millions and even billions of viable
weed seeds deposited in the soil

For example: Koch (1969) estimated 300,000 –

350,000 weed seeds/sq m, which is equivalent to 3
to 3.5 billion/ha
Viability of Weed Seeds

- The ability of weed seeds to become viable for a

long period of time explains why they are
successful in their struggle for survival
- Seeds of water hyacinth can survive for as long as
15 years!
- Soil type determines viability of weed seeds:

Peat soil is more detrimental to seed viability than

mineral soil
Sandy soils are more prone to drought and can
reduce water content of seeds to below survival
DORMANCY – is the inability of the seed or any
vegetative propagule to germinate under favorable
conditions.

- it can be acquired as the seed or organ develops or

matures (primary or natural dormancy), or

- Induced through encounter with unfavorable

conditions (induced or secondary dormancy)
Mechanisms of Dormancy

1. Physical – this involves the impermeability of the

thick seed coat to imbibe water and oxygen,
hence even the embryo is viable it will not
germinate because of the barrier. Examples:
seeds of C. Argentia, I. Triloba, R.
Cochinchinensis

2. Physiological – can be accounted to immaturity

of the embryo or to the presence of substances
inhibitory to the germination of weed seeds
Ways of Breaking Dormancy

1. Microbial action

2. Treatment with acid (sulfuric acid)

3. Passage through the alimentary tract of animals

4. Dehulling or scarification

5. Exposure to alternate alternate wet and dry

conditions
6. After ripening process (lapse of time required for
the plant to overcome the physiological barrier for
germination

7. Treatment with germination promoters (KNO3,

GA, Auxin)

8. Exposure to light to inactivate the inhibitors

9. Stratification or low temperature treatment

10. Use of suitable germination medium for

germination that can adsorbed the inhibitors
Germination – is the resumption of growth of the
seed embryo or the young plantlet in a tuber, bulb
or rhizome marks the beginning of the battle for
survival of the weed.

Steps in germination process

1. Imbibition of water
composed of 2 phases:

a. Phase I – a physical process involving the

absorption of water by starch and is taking place
in living and dead seeds.
b. Phase II – is a physiological process involving the
absorption of water by the embryo.
- Starts the initiation and progress of starch
hydrolysis which triggers metabolism.

2. Period of rapid metabolic activity- characterize by

rapid cell division and elongation

3. Root elongation – first sign of germination

4. Shoot emergence – first sign of weed growth

 2 types of shoot emergence

a. Hypogeal – cotyledon remain below or at the

surface of the soil

b. Epigeal – cotyledon is carried above ground

5. Period of independent growth – seedling starts to

manufacture its own food, leading to an increase
in weight.
Factors affecting weed germination
1. Environmental factors

1.1. Moisture - water is needed to soften the seed coat

and makes it permeable to water and oxygen. It is
also needed for enzyme activation.

1.2.Temperature - favorable temperature is needed

for the normal metabolic activities taking place.

1.3. Oxygen - important in respiration for generation

of metabolic energy.
2. Cultural factors
2.1.Water management
- In germination hydration of the seed component
is necessary for proper enzymatic activity.
Excessive water, however, creates oxygen tension
inhibiting germination.

2.2. Wetting and drying can stimulate or inhibit

germination.
- In dormant seeds of Rottboellia, alternate wetting
and drying stimulate germination, which is
partially due to loss of integrity of the hull or loss
of inhibitor.
3. Cultivation has multiple effect on
germination

- It brings to the soil surface seeds buried deep in

the soil and subject to the influence of sunlight,
enhancing germination.

- Cultivation also aerates the soil, providing oxygen

to buried seed.

- It affects severing of the dormant tubers,

rhizomes, bulbs and stolon from their mother
plant, causing them to lose dormancy.
 Seedling growth and development

Seedling stage is the most important stage in weed

establishment.

- The most vulnerable and most practical stage for

control

- The stage where damage against the crop is at the

low level and any control measure can take
advantage of the sensitivity of the weed seedling.
- Most susceptible stage to herbicide action. Most
pre-emergence herbicides are effectively absorbed
through the tender tissues of the mesocotyl,
coleoptile, hypocotyl or radicle. Other inhibit
growth at the emergence of the shoot.

- Leaves at the early seedling stage are tender

succulent, lack cutin and waxes allowing easy
penetration of the herbicide.

- Roots of seedlings have still thin epidermal walls

making herbicide absorption more efficient.
 Factors Affecting Seedling Growth and
Development

1. Soil factors
1.1. Nutrient level -- seedling stage is characterized
by rapid metabolic activity which create a big
demand for the needed soil resources.
- Most weeds are more efficient than the crops in
drawing nutrients from the soil. Amaranthus
accumulates Calcium, Cleome and Pistia
accumulate potassium.

1.2. Salinity - salinization of areas near sea shore

appear to favor weeds than crop.
2. Light - shading reduces the amount of light available
to the plant reducing photosynthetic activity and
consequently reducing dry matter production.

- Shading increases relative humidity in the area above

the shaded species causing decrease transpiration and
slow nutrient uptake from the soil.

- High relative humidity can also cause higher incidence

of diseases.

- Some species are sensitive to shading such as Cynodon

dactylon, Imperata cylindrica, Pistia stratiotes and
Cyperus rotundus.
3. Adaptation to growing condition
 The ability to adapt to adverse conditions is
responsible for the rapid spread and wide distribution
of weeds.
 Cynodon dactylon - introduced to Southeast Asia as a
turf grass is now growing luxuriantly as a weed.
 Echinochloa crusgalli - native of Central and East
Asia can survive in sub-temperate condition.
 Rottboellia cochinchinensis - strictly tropical in
distribution is now found in sub temperate areas in the
United State.
 Eichhornia crassipes - introduced as ornamental
during the Spanish regime. It is adapted to the
condition in the country and now is a serious weed.
4. Competitive power of the weed

- Most weeds derived their competitive power from their

rapid development manifested by:

4.1. rapid root growth and development

4.2. rapid leaf production
4.3. multiple shoot development
4.4. formation of large and expansive foliar-type of
cotyledon allowing early photosynthetic function.
4.5. formation of toxin, which may be toxic to other
higher plants as in Imperata and Rottboellia or toxic
to microorganisms as in Tagetes erecta.
Weed Interference – is a general term which
comprises both concepts of allelopathy and
competition.
- It refers to positive or negative interaction between
or among organisms.

Competition - occurs when two or more plants make

demands for the same resources of the
environment in excess of the immediate supply or
when the resources are supplied in the limited
amount.
 2 types of competition
1. Interspecific competition - competition between
plants of different species.

2. Intraspecific competition - competition between

plants of the same species.

MAJOR FACTORS FOR COMPETITION

1. Water

2. Nutrients

3. Light
WATER - Plants vary in their water needs for optimum
growth but that weeds are more efficient in water
utilization. The efficiency in water utilization is
expressed either in gm of water utilized per gm dry
matter produced, or one gram of water to produce a
certain amount of dry matter. This approximates the
competitive ability of the species:

 Rice requires 682 gm of water to produce 1 g dry

matter.
 Corn needs 371.1 to have 1 g dry matter
 Portulaca, a very succulent weed, requires only
253 g.
 NUTRIENTS - among the essential nutrients
taken from the soil, nitrogen appears to be the
most critical for most crop-weed competition.

 When the weeds are removed, the crop benefited

considerably from the addition of fertilizer.

 At a certain density level, C. rotundus is very

responsive to nitrogen..
 LIGHT - competition for light occurs when weed shades
a crop such that the light received by the shaded crop is
less than that necessary for optimum growth.
 Ex. Echinochloa in transplanted rice.
 The rice seedlings have a headstart over the weed but in
one or two weeks the weeds outgrow the crop. Species
that can form canopy faster can be more competitive. The
shading ability can be expressed in terms of light
transmission ratio (LTR) and leaf area index (LAI). LTR is
expressed in % as ratio of light intensity at ground level to
the light intensity above the plant canopy times 100.
 LAI - Leaf Area of the plant per unit ground area.
 LTR is affected by LAI; more leaves, lower LTR, and higher
LAI
Physiological basis for plant competition
- Weeds are definitely more competitive than crop and
this is attributed to its efficient mechanisms for
adaptation having evolved through the natural process
of selection. Crops, on the other hand, are developed
by artificial selection and mechanisms for adaptation
are, therefore, not as efficient as those in weeds.

- The growth rate of plants is primarily a function of

carbon assimilation in the photosynthetic process.
Black et al (1969) divided plants based on their
photosynthetic capacity into efficient and non-
efficient groups.
Table 1. Comparison of physiological and anatomical properties of efficient
and non-efficient plants (Mercado, 1979).
Aspect Efficient Non-efficient

Pathway in photosynthesis C4 C3

Chloroplast in vascular
bundle sheath Present Low

CO2 compensation point Low High

Photorespiration None or limited Rapid

Water requirement low High

Light intensity saturation High Low

Temperature optimum for

Photosynthesis High Low
List of some efficient and non-efficient plant species
Efficient Non-efficient

Portulaca oleraceae(weed) Phaseolus vulgaris (crop)

Amaranthus spp. (weed) Gossypium hirsutum (crop)
Zea mays (crop) Glycine max (crop)
Cynodon dactylon (weed) Nicotiana tabacum (crop)
Echinochloa crusgalli(weed) Lactuca sativa (crop)
Digitaria sanguinalis(weed) Oryza sativa (crop)
Sorghum halepense (weed Triticum aestivum (crop)
Saccharum offinarum(crop) Hordeum vulgare (crop)
Cyperus rotundus (weed)
ALLELOPATHY

Greek words: allelon (of each other); pathos (to

suffer). It includes both detrimental and beneficial
biochemical interactions among all classes of plants,
including microorganisms.

The term allelopathy is coined by H. Molisch in 1937.

Father of allelopathy.

Rice (1984) published a book on Allelopathy. Defined as

“any direct or indirect harmful or beneficial effects by
one plant (including microorganisms) on another
through the production of chemical compounds that
escape into the environment”
 CLASSIFICATION OF ALLELOPATHIC SUBSTANCE

Grummer and Beyer (1960) classified toxic allelopathic

substances based on the producer and receiver
organisms namely:
1. Antibiotic – substance produced by a microorganism
and effective against another microorganism.
2. Marasmin – substance produce by a microorganism
and toxic against higher plants.
3. Phytoncide – substance produce by a higher plant
and effective against a microoganism.
4. Koline – substance produce by higher plants and
effective against another higher plant.
 METHODS OF WEED CONTROL
1. Prevented method
a. Use of high quality and disease and weed seed-free
planting materials.
b. Control of weeds before they produce seeds or
vegetative propagules.

2. Physical/Cultural method
a. Land preparation and management of weed seeds and
vegetative propagules reserves banks in the soil.
b. Handweeding/slashing
c. Hoe weeding
d. Interrow cultivation
e. Mulching - – provides considerable control of some weeds
by reducing light available to the crops and serving as a
barrier to weed emergence

f. Water management or flooding - this method is

effectively used in transplanted lowland rice

g. Use of competitive crop varieties or cultivars - a variety

adapted to the locality which is characterized by an early
rapid growth provides some measure of weed control
through its competitive advantage;

h. Multiple cropping -this may involve spatial

(intercropping) or temporal (crop rotation or sequential
cropping) combinations of crops in an area in one year
3. Biological control - is the deliberate use of a weed’s
natural enemies, such as insects or pathogens, to
suppress the growth or reduce the population of the
weed.
Characteristics of a good biocon agent
a. Ability to kill or prevent the reproduction of the
weed host
b. High ability to disperse and locate the weed host
c. Good adaptability to the weed host and on the
existing environmental conditions.
d. Sufficient reproductive capacity to overtake the
increase of its weed host when unfavorable
environment occurs
4. Chemical control – involves the use of herbicides for
selective control of weeds with minimum or no injury
to the crop.

Classification of herbicide

a. Time of application

1. Preplant herbicide – herbicides applied after land

preparation but before the crop is planted. The herbicide
is volatile and needs to be incorporated in the soil before
planting. Also true to herbicides used to control existing
weed vegetation before the crop is planted.
2. Pre-emergence herbicides – the chemical is
applied after the crop is planted but before the
weeds of the crop emerge. Example: Butachlor

3. Postemergence herbicides – the herbicide is

applied after the crop or the weeds have emerged.
Examples: Paraquat and Glyphosate.
b. Movement in plants

1. Contact herbicides – herbicide whose

phytotoxic effects are manifested at the sites of
the plants where the spray droplets are deposited.
Example: Paraquat

2. Translocated/systemic herbicides – herbicides

whose phytotoxic effects are manifested at and
away from the sites on the plant where the spray
droplets are deposited. The herbicide is moved to
other parts of the plant.
Example: Glyphosate
3. Selectivity

a. Non-selective herbicides – herbicide that kills all

plants. Examples:Paraquat and Glyphosate

b. Selective herbicides – herbicides that kill some

plants leaving others practically unharmed. Example
2,4-D.
THANK YOU VERY
MUCH