What are "weeds" ?
"Mauvaises herbes" or "adventices" in french , "weeds" in english are the terms one can’t get away from in weed science. But between those terms there are some subtle differences.
Read moreLa malherbologie : tout savoir sur les mauvaises herbes
Weeds are one of the main biological problems of tropical agriculture, it is also the one which is the most under-estimated. At world level, the production of food crops is directly affected by this problem. The constraint of weeds is very serious as far as developing countries are concerned : they represent up to 25% of loss in production compared to 5% in temperate zones.
Why do weeds grow ?
To understand the reasons of the presence of weeds implies a deep knowledge of weediness (floristic composition, ecology and biology of species …) and the ecological and agronomical factors that influence their development. Thanks to this knowledge, it is possible to target and intervene on those factors so as to keep the weediness below the critical level of biological or economic damage.
Read moreWhat are the characteristics of weeds ?
All plants are not weeds. The capacity of a species to become invasive depends on a certain number of characters.
Read moreHow to recognize a weed ?
The identification of weeds by agronomists is not an easy task since most of the classical methods are not adapted to that type of plant. The recent setting up of Advenrun, a software describing and helping to identify weeds in Réunion, makes it possible to avoid most of the classical flora constraints and, at the same time, to have a tool adapted to most of the users.
Read moreWhat are the consequences of weediness ?
Losses in production due to weeds affect the world food production, but more particularly that of developing countries. It’s actually in tropical zone that the loss estimate is the highest: 25 % of production as opposed to 5 % in developed countries. Already in 1967, the first world analysis showed that in Africa, these losses were between 10 and 56%.
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