Now a days, less and less soil disturbances are desired. At the same time we are conscious about the environmental harm caused by herbicides. So, in this context can physical weed management holds relevance in modern weed management?
1. Electrical weed management (with use of high voltage probes)
2. Robotic weed control with steam or laser beams
3. Weed control with UV treatments
4. Seed dormancy induction by intermittent use of infrared light.
The problem is that chemical sprays are often cheap and can be applied using unskilled workers (please note that I did not say that unskilled workers would do a good job). The process is inefficient and can lead to environmental contamination. Precision agriculture can reduce herbicide use through machine learning and targeted sprays. So the real question is whether it is faster to spray a dose of chemical on the target versus shoot it with lasers or zap it with electricity. The economics of maintaining the equipment is also an issue. The other issue is that weeds become resistant to chemicals. I don't know of a weed that is resistant to lasers, steam, or high voltage.
Timothy A Ebert
Yes sir, that is what I am trying to express. In my view, the future of weed management lies in the precision physico-mechanical weed management strategies. But I just want to know views of other researchers.
Dear Prithwiraj Dey
As you know, the use of electricity, robots, sensors, ultra sonic waves and laser is very expensive for farmers especially in large scale fields. Everybody know that many concerns have been raised due to herbicides residues in agroecosystems (Human health, environmental safety, water and soil resources pollution, weed resistance and creation the superweeds, etc). however the use biological and cultural methods (and not the physical one) could be consider as a safe, eco-friendly and cost effective alternatives for chemical method.
The argument raised is realistic but in my perception biological weed controls have its own weak points. That is the cause it is not well developed in current date. Moreover, they are not feasible for precision weed control. Physical methods are very much feasible for robotic weed control in GIS based farming in large scales without any involvement of labours. Please share your views respected Dr. Mohammad Mehdizadeh
Zero or minimum tillage is the answer to crops.. to avoid moisture loss and soil erosion
I undertake research of invasive plants within tropical savanna and rangeland environments - probably a very different situation if your question is crop farming-based, though I'd like to contribute to the broader discussion anyway.
While technological advancements will continue to cause us to re-evaluate treatment choices, best practice control should always be determined on the basis of what's effective and efficient without causing negative environmental or social impacts.
One field study (link attached) that I completed in 2017 showed that physical/mechanical (bulldozer) control of Vachellia nilotica provided significant benefits without any negative outcomes. Poster From prickly acacia to pasture - key lessons from a mechanic...
Nathan March
Actually I am interested in the new generation physical/mechanical methods of weed management that is compatible with precision farming and robotic agriculture.
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