Site specific weed control in maize, sugar beet, winter wheat and winter barley

Publikations-Art

Zeitschriftenbeitrag

Autoren

Gerhards, R. and M. Sökefeld, C. Timmermann and W. Kühbauch and M. Williams

Erscheinungsjahr

2002

Veröffentlicht in

Precision Agriculture

Band/Volume

3/1

Seite (von - bis)

25-35

A four-year study of site-specific weed control is presented in this paper. Weed seedling distribution was sampled and mapped prior to and after post-emergence herbicide application in four fields planted with maize, sugar beets, winter wheat and winter barley, rotating on one site. Herbicides and other weed control strategies were applied site-specifically according to the spatial variation of weed populations. Different decision algorithms were used for chemical weed control methods in each crop. A weed treatment map was created to direct location and dosage of herbicide application. The sprayer was coupled with a differential Global Positioning System (DGPS). The solenoid valves of the sprayer were opened automatically when the tractor entered a weed patch characterized in the weed treatment map. For site specific herbicide application, a patch sprayer was developed that allowed variable rate application and the selective control of each section of the spray boom.