Weed Management in Organic Agriculture

Weed Management is an essential element in Organic Agriculture. Organic farms practice weed suppression, a method very different from the weed elimination being adopted by conventional farms. Conventional farms use synthetic substances to kill weeds. These pesticides however release numerous kinds of toxic chemicals into the soil and some even get absorbed by the plants. Organic farming on the other hand uses crop rotation to disrupt the growth of weeds because weeds react differently on certain kinds of crops. Some crops also produce phytotoxic substances that are very harmful to weeds. Manual and mechanical weeding is also utilized to control the growth of the weeds.

Crop Rotation is an integral practice in Organic Agriculture. It is a method in which different crops are planted in the same soil at different times. An example of this would be planting rice plants during one harvest cycle and planting corn plants of the next one. Intercropping is also one often used technique. It involves planting different kinds of crops at the same area of soil at the same period of time. An example would be planting both rice plants and corn plants in the same farmyard during the same harvest cycle. The two methods can also be combined if the need arise. When crop rotation is used together with intercropping, it means that a different combination of crops is planted on the same area after one harvest cycle. An example would be planting rice and corn in one cycle and then planting tomatoes and potatoes on the next one.

There are also other techniques allowed to be used in Organic Agriculture for the suppression of weeds. Competitive cropping is the planting of crops that have high nutrient absorption capabilities. These types of plants absorb nutrients so efficiently even weeds cannot keep up with them. They effectively discourage and/or hamper the growth of weeds. High density cropping is another method to keep the nutrients weeds can absorb limited. This is performed by planting as many crops as can fit the in the soil. Each plant is given just enough space to grow. Tight row cropping follows the same principle. The spaces between the crop rows are kept limited to reduce the area in which weeds can possibly grow.

There are also various kinds of mechanical and physical weed management techniques used in Organic Agriculture. Tillage is the most popular among these methods. It involves regular turning of the soil surrounding the plants which allows the microorganisms to function more effectively. Some microorganisms are disliked by weeds. Turning the soil also removes existing weeds. Mowing is another commonly used approach. It involves removal of the top portions of the weeds. Their roots are allowed to remain intact. The less parts the weed needs to sustain, the less nutrients it needs to absorb. The cut off weed parts can also be used as green manure.