Editorial |
Page No: 1-15
‘Alien’ Species, ‘Pertinacious Weeds’ and the ‘Ideal Weed’ – Revisited
Nimal R. Chandrasena
KEYWORDS:
ideal weed pertinacity in weeds alien species rachel carson history of weed science herbert george baker asa gray
Abstract:
A sound knowledge of the history of Weed Science – is essential for us weed scientists to adapt to emerging challenges and paradigm shifts in our dealings with weeds. It is helpful to know how we got to where we are in Weed Science.
This knowledge of history should include a good grasp of reflections and ideas of our founders, which defined the pathway for the discipline to evolve as an indispensable scientific endeavour it has now become. As in any discipline, there were seminal events, pivotal moments and key individuals whose efforts laid our foundations and pioneered a shared interest. In this Editorial, I wish to revisit a few of these, including two important symposia and the contributions of the American botanist - Asa Gray and the British-American evolutionary biologist - Herbert George Baker of ‘The Ideal weed’ fame.
Email
nimal.chandrasena@gmail.com
Address
Current Address: Nature Consulting, 1, Kawana Court, Bella Vista, NSW 2153, Australia
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Original Research |
Page No: 16-33
Plant Invasion Research in Nepal: A Review of Recent National Trends
Mohan Pandey, Khum Bahadur Thapa-Magar , Buddhi Sagar Poudel , Thomas Seth Davis and Bharat Babu Shrestha
KEYWORDS:
Invasive Alien Plant Species, IAPS, Web of Science, research trends, research gaps
Abstract:
Research interests in Invasive Alien Plant Species (IAPS) have expanded globally, and nationally in Nepal, over the last few decades. Here we provide a systematic compilation and analysis of the scientific literature to explore research trends and identify research gaps in plant invasion biology in Nepal. We compiled and examined journal publications retrieved from Web of Science (WOS) and other databases (NepJOL, Google Scholar, and other bibliographies) using specific search keywords. The search yielded 86 research studies on IAPS, published between 1958 and 2020 (up to August 2020) that met our pre-determined criteria. The number of publications in national journals that focused on IAPS increased, starting in 2000, but this increase was not notable in international journals, until 2010. Nearly 91 % of the studies that appeared in international journals were published after 2010. A majority of the studies focus on biology, ecology, and ecological impact studies of a few selected IAPS, especially mile-a-minute (Mikania micrantha Kunth), parthenium weed (Parthenium hysterophorus L.), and crofton weed (Ageratina adenophora (Spreng.) R.M. King & H.Rob.), mostly in Nepal’s forest ecosystems. Eightyfour percent (84%) of field-based studies have been conducted in the central region of Nepal (Bagmati and Gandaki provinces together). Tribhuvan University, a Government-funded, National University of Nepal, was the largest contributor to IAPS related research and our analysis revealed that international grants were the primary funding sources for this research. We conclude that future regional research should be prioritized on thematic areas focusing on: (a) understudied phytogeographic regions, (b) impacts on protected areas, (c) under-studied invasive and naturalized species, (d) IAP dispersal mechanisms, and (e) economic impacts. Additional research in these priority areas will help to focus our understanding of IAPS in Nepal and will be important for mitigating ecological and economic damages from IAPS. Also, funding from government agencies for research, and incentives for graduate students to publish their theses, may improve the knowledgesharing aspects related to the above themes and reduce biases in areas that we identified in this review.
Email
taslimazahan_tzp@yahoo.com
Address
Central Department of Botany, Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu, Nepal
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Technical Paper |
Page No: 34-45
Design and testing of field application tools for a bioherbicide with a plant virus as active ingredient
Raghavan Charudattan ,Ernest Hiebert, Wayne Currey, Mark Elliott, James DeValerio and Gabriella Maia
KEYWORDS:
Tobacco mild green mosaic tobamovirus, TMGMV, plant virus, tropical soda apple, Solanum viarum, SolviNix, bioherbicide
Abstract:
SolviNix LC is a novel commercial bioherbicide containing a plant virus as the active ingredient (ai). It is registered in the USA for the control of tropical soda apple (Solanum viarum, TSA), an invasive weed of pastures and woodlands. As no prior example or experience exists for the application of a plant virus as an herbicide, we devised and tested tools and methods for field application. Our objectives were to design a practical, economical, and effective tool and method that could be easily melded into weed management practices. This should be accomplished by delivering a minimal effective amount of the ai (in dosage and rate). As TMGMV, like all plant viruses, requires physical damage to the plant by abrasion or wounds to enter the tissues, we designed, assembled, and tested four tools and a few modifications thereof that simultaneously abraded and applied the bioherbicide to the leaves. We also tested two commercially available herbicide wipers and modifications to them to treat individual plants. Of the tools tested, high-pressure sprayers, either a backpack sprayer or an all-terrain vehicle (ATV) mounted sprayer, delivering the herbicide at > 0.55 MPa (>80 psi), provided the desired level of weed kill (85% or higher). Here we describe the different application tools, the test results, and the rationale for the application tool/method presently included in the label, a backpack sprayer. Given the novelty of the application systems we tried, this report could be instructive to others facing a similar challenge
Email
rcharudattan@bioprodex.com
Address
BioProdex, Inc., 3131 NW 13th Street, # 54, Gainesville, FL 32609-2183
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Perspective |
Page No: 46-52
Publications of W.M. Porterfield Jnr. on Weeds of Shanghai: A Review
Peter W. Michael
KEYWORDS:
W. M. Porterfield, Botanist, Shanghai
Abstract:
This paper provides a brief review of the botanical contributions of W. M. Porterfield (1893-1966), focusing on a list of 115 plants, including many weeds, 75 of which he described and illustrated in a series of articles and later published in a book with descriptions of an additional 40 plants. His meticulous observations are of great interest in the study of weed biology and history. All plants were collected in Shanghai.
Email
pwjemichael@hotmail.com
Address
Current Address: 5, George Street, Epping, NSW 2121, Australia
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Perspective |
Page No: 53-66
On the difficulty of being a ‘Weed’ ….
David Low
KEYWORDS:
Community-led weed management,Herbicides, Grotesque creatures, Weeds
Abstract:
A weed, on the other hand, is not valued positively at all, it is a cultural ‘invader’. The weed, therefore, has no claim to cultural landscape continuity in any positive sense, either from the point of view of production nor conservation. Indeed, it is often a ‘declared pest’ and must be killed, usually by poison. As an unwanted visitor to ‘our’ world, the opportunistic weed is feared and maligned – it gets what it deserves.
Email
david.low7@bigpond.com
Address
Current Address: PO Box 415 Moorabbin Vic 3189, Australia
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Perspective |
Page No: 67-80
Dragon Trees, Von Humboldt, and Napoleon: Water Hyacinth’s Journey to Africa
Jeremiah M. Kitunda
KEYWORDS:
Water hyacinth, Eichhornia crassipes, African lakes and rivers, Dragon tree, Alexander Von Humboldt, Napoleon, ecology, environment, aquatic weeds
Abstract:
This paper provides an account of the German naturalist and explorer - Alexander von Humboldt’s role in the migration of water hyacinth ([Eichhornia crassipes (Mart.) Solms], from its native range in the Amazon to other parts of the world between 1800 and 2000 1 . Humboldt (1769-1859), an avid plant collector, transplanted this free-floating aquatic species, renowned for its beauty as a wildflower, from its natural habitat in the Orinoco River in the Amazon Basin, first to the botanical gardens in North America and Europe at the beginning of the 19th Century. By the mid-19th Century, his network of scientists had already transferred the plant from European botanical gardens to Asia, Australia, Oceania and Africa, as a fish-breeding facility, an ornamental beauty, and a plant of interest to botanical research. By the last quarter of the 19th Century, the plant had become well-adapted to conditions in countries where it had been introduced, and spread aggressively, especially in Egypt, South Africa, and the USA. Its fame rose as both an obnoxious aquatic weed and multipurpose plant. During the imperial wars of the early 20th Century, European colonial armies used mats of water hyacinth as screens against enemy detection. In recent decades, water hyacinth has been declared the worst aquatic weed ever seen in Africa’s watercourses. It challenges navigation in natural and artificial waterways. Nonetheless, Africans turned this ecological disaster into an economic asset with the guiding spirit – ‘if you can’t beat the mats, join them’. The narrative of water hyacinth, therefore, represents one of the yardsticks with which to measure the depth and extent of Humboldt’s influence in both temporal and geographical space. Based on his personal accounts, herbaria data, and published literature, this paper provides a brief introduction to the role of this German naturalist in the migration of water hyacinth and perspectives on the influence of plant collectors of the past centuries on the spread of species during the colonial era.
Email
kitundajm@appstate.edu
Address
Current Address: Appalachian State University, Department of History 224 Joyce Lawrence Lane, Boone, NC 28608, USA
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