![\"Presentation](\"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/weedecology\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/354\/2017\/04\/presentation1.jpg\")
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Hypothesis: two weeks of spring solarization will encourage weed seeds to germinate so they can be killed, depleting the seedbank and creating a better stale seedbed.\u00a0 <\/em><\/p>\n We tested this hypothesis through four experiments in May-June of 2015 and 2016.\u00a0 At the start of each experiment, fields were rototilled, thoroughly irrigated, and solarization plots were covered with salvaged 6-mil clear polyethylene hoophouse plastic.\u00a0 We secured the plastic edges by clipping them to metal pipe laid in a shallow (4\u201d deep) trench around each plot.\u00a0 Control plots were left fallow after rototilling and irrigating.\u00a0 After two weeks, plastic was removed, and all plots (solarized and control) were flamed using a hand-held propane burner to create stale seedbeds.\u00a0 Two weeks after flaming, we counted the number of weeds that had emerged in each plot.<\/p>\n To our surprise, two weeks of springtime solarization actually suppressed<\/em> weed emergence, both while plastic was in place and after plastic removal and flaming.\u00a0 On average, solarization plus flaming resulted in stale seedbeds with 78% fewer weeds than control stale seedbeds created with flaming only.\u00a0 Soil temperatures were higher in solarized plots, reaching a maximum of 117\u00b0F at 2\u201d soil depth, as compared to a maximum of 100\u00b0F in controls.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em>The weed suppression following solarization was so visually apparent, we wondered whether flaming after plastic removal was necessary.\u00a0 To address this question, during one of our experiments we kept half of each plot un-flamed for comparison.\u00a0 We found that flaming significantly reduced weeds in the control plots, but not the solarized plots.\u00a0 In short, solarization did a good enough job that flaming afterward was not necessary.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n Overall these results suggest solarization is a very promising strategy for stale seedbed preparation in Maine.\u00a0 Although laying the plastic is labor-intensive, the weed control benefits may be worth the extra effort, especially prior to planting high value direct seeded crops.\u00a0 More blog posts about solarization coming soon!<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Sonja Birthisel, PhD Student in Ecology and Environmental Sciences Eric R. Gallandt, Professor of Weed Ecology and Management Solarization is the practice of using clear plastic mulches to trap solar energy, heating soils to temperatures lethal to pests including weeds.\u00a0 Solarization is nothing new; it has been researched and used by growers extensively since the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1032,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[56,75],"tags":[119,130,131,137],"class_list":["post-1128","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-ecologically-based-weed-management","category-weed-seedbank","tag-organic-farming","tag-solarization","tag-stale-seedbed","tag-weed-seedbank-management"],"yoast_head":"\n![\"agriculture](\"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/weedecology\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/354\/2017\/04\/picture3.png\")
<\/p>\n![\"solarization](\"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/weedecology\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/354\/2017\/04\/picture5.png\")
Results: two weeks after we removed plastic and created stale seedbeds, there were 78% fewer weeds in the solarized treatment than the flamed control.\u00a0 The \u201c*\u201d indicates a statistically significant difference between solarized and control treatments.\u00a0\u00a0 <\/em><\/p>\n![\"flaming](\"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/weedecology\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/354\/2017\/04\/picture6.png\")
Solarization with or without flaming created an excellent stale seedbed.\u00a0 The \u201c*\u201d indicates that flaming significantly reduced weeds in the control treatment, the \u201cns\u201d indicates that flaming did not have a significant effect in the solarized treatment.\u00a0 <\/em><\/p>\n![\"tips](\"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/weedecology\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/354\/2017\/04\/picture4-300x262.png\")
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