Acessibilidade / Reportar erro

Weed control of glufosinate, oxyfluorfen, and paraquat as affected by the application time of day

Abstract

Background:

The application of appropriately timed herbicide is an affordable approach to optimize the activity of herbicides.

Objective:

The study aims to determine the best night-time to apply glufosinate, oxyfluorfen, and paraquat with emphasis on the role of the period of dark exposure after herbicide application.

Methods:

The study was conducted at two fields in Iran, the fresh weight: dry weight (FW/DW) ratio of five weed species treated with glufosinate, oxyfluorfen, and paraquat at 0.5x and 1x of labeled doses after sunset or before sunrise was assessed.

Results:

The application time-of-day effect for tested herbicides was affected by application dose of herbicide and was more pronounced when the herbicides were applied at the 0.5x as compared to at the 1x. In 14 out of 18 cases, foliage tissues were more desiccated with the sunset applications of herbicides at the 0.5x than with the sunrise applications. When applications were made after sunset, an increased foliage tissues desiccation of Chenopodium album L. treated with paraquat (29.6%) in field 1 and C. album treated with glufosinate (27.2%) or paraquat (23.7%), and Malva neglecta Wallr. treated with glufosinate (21.6%) or oxyfluorfen (31.6%) in field 2 was detected by increasing the dose from 0.5x to 1x. Except 4 out of 18 cases, the herbicides applied either at the 0.5x after sunset or at the 1x before sunrise resulted in similar FW/DW ratio in all weed species.

Conclusions:

If contact herbicides are used at night-time after sunset, it is possible to take advantage of their reduced doses.

Keywords:
contact herbicide; foliage desiccation; photodynamic herbicide

Highlights

The application time of day effect for contact herbicides is dose-dependent.

The contact herbicides are more active at night-time applications than at day-time ones.

At night-time applications, the application after sunset is preferable to the application before sunrise.

1 Introduction

Chemical weed control is increasing worldwide due to be an affordable option (Kudsk, 2008Kudsk P. Optimising herbicide dose: a straightforward approach to reduce the risk of side effects of herbicides. Environmentalist. 2008;28:49-55.). There is a recommendation to apply no-tillage systems and/or crop rotation with cover crop (Sims et al., 2018Sims B, Corsi S, Gbehounou G, Kienzle J, Taguchi M, Friedrich T. Sustainable weed management for conservation agriculture: options for smallholder farmers. Agri. 2018;8(8):118p. https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture8080118
https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture80801...
), a suggestion to remove a failed crop before planting a subsequent crop (Norsworthy et al., 2011Norsworthy JK, Smith KL, Griffith G. Evaluation of combinations of paraquat plus photosystem II-inhibiting herbicides for controlling failed stands of maize (Zea mays). Crop Prot. 2011;30:307-10. ), or a tendency to convert annual crop into higher-value perennial crop, e.g. pistachio and saffron in Iran, due to relatively high soil salinity (Shrestha et al., 2018Shrestha A, deSouza LL, Yang P, Sosnoskie L, Hanson BD. Differential tolerance of glyphosate-susceptible and glyphosate-resistant biotypes of junglerice (Echinochloa colona) to environments during germination, growth, and intraspecific competition. Weed Sci. 2018;66:340-6. ). These can most likely increase the application of contact herbicides, with little or no activity in soil. Such herbicides belong to the group of Photosystem I inhibitors (D/22), protoporphyrinogen oxidase inhibitors (E/14), and glutamine synthetase inhibitors (H/10) on the basis of WSSA (2012WSSA. Common and chemical names of herbicides approved by the Weed Science Society of America. Weed Sci. 2012;60:650-7.). Although they have different modes of action, they have almost the same mechanism of action in plants. So that, a range of oxidizing species, including OH by electron deflectors at Photosystem I, e.g. paraquat, 1O2 by protoporphyrinogen oxidase inhibitors, e.g. oxyfluorfen, and 3CHL by glutamine synthetase inhibitors, e.g. glufosinate, in plants treated with these groups of herbicides can be formed. They can initiate a series of reactions, resulting in cell membrane disruption, leading to rapid leaf desiccation and, subsequently, plant death (Cobb and Reade, 2010Cobb AH, Reade JPH. Herbicides and plant physiology. [S.l.]: John Wiley and Sons; 2010.).

Although contact herbicides are important to agriculture, there is an increasing focus on the non-target effects of them on the fauna, flora, and particularly humans (Ahn et al., 2001Ahn Y, Kim Y, Yoo J. Toxicity of the herbicide glufosinate-ammonium to predatory insects and mites of Tetranychus urticae (Acari: tetranychidae) under laboratory conditions. Econ Entomol. 2001;94:157-61.; Carpenter and Boutin, 2010Carpenter D, Boutin C. Sublethal effects of the herbicide glufosinate ammonium on crops and wild plants: Short-term effects compared to vegetative recovery and plant reproduction. Ecotoxicol. 2010;19:1322-36.; Zhao et al., 2013Zhao J, Neher DA, Fu S, Li Z, Wang K. Non-target effects of herbicides on soil nematode assemblages. Pest Manag Sci. 2013;69:679-84.; Prosser et al., 2016Prosser RS, Anderson JC, Hanson ML, Solomon KR, Sibley PK. Indirect effects of herbicides on biota in terrestrial edge-of-field habitats: a critical review of the literature. Agric Ecosyst Environ. 2016;232:59-72.). Therefore, they are considered a global human rights concern (UN, 2017UN. Report of the Special Rapporteur on the right to food. United Nations, General Assembly, Human Rights Council, A/HRC/34/48. 2017.), especially glufosinate, which has been identified as a highly hazardous herbicide since 2009 (PANI, 2018PANI. List of highly hazardous pesticides. Pesticide Action Network International, 2018. ). In this regard, it is important to optimize the activity of contact herbicides for applying them at doses below the labeled dose (1x), leading to the reduction of non-target effects (Kudsk, 2008Kudsk P. Optimising herbicide dose: a straightforward approach to reduce the risk of side effects of herbicides. Environmentalist. 2008;28:49-55.). This is the first step towards an integrated weed management system (Zhang et al., 2013Zhang J, Zheng L, Jäck O, Yan D, Zhang Z, Gerhards R, et al. Efficacy of four post-emergence herbicides applied at reduced doses on weeds in summer maize (Zea mays L.) fields in North China Plain. Crop Prot. 2013;52:26-32. ).

The application of appropriately timed herbicide can be used as an affordable approach to optimize the activity of herbicides. Previous studies have shown that the activity of contact herbicides such as aciflurofen (Lee and Oliver, 1982Lee SD, Oliver LR. Efficacy of aciflurofen on broadleaf weeds: times and methods for application. Weed Sci. 1982;30:520-6.), bentazon (Stopps et al., 2013Stopps GJ, Nurse RE, Sikkema PH. The effect of time of day on the activity of postemergence soybean herbicides. Weed Technol. 2013;27:690-5. ), bromoxynil (Stewart et al., 2009Stewart CL, Nurse RE, Sikkema PH. Time of day impacts POST weed control in corn. Weed Technol. 2009;23:346-55.), carfentrazone-ethyl, diquat (Wersal et al., 2010Wersal RM, Madsen JD, Massey JH, Robles W, Cheshier JC. Comparison of daytime and night-time applications of diquat and carfentrazone-ethyl for control of parrotfeather and eurasian watermilfoil. J Aquat Plant Manage. 2010;48:56-8.), fluthiacet-methyl, flumiclorac (Fausey and Renner, 2001Fausey JC, Renner KA. Environmental effects on CGA-248757 and flumiclorac efficacy/soybean tolerance. Weed Sci. 2001;49:668-74.), fomesafen (Miller et al., 2003Miller RP, Martinson KB, Sothern RB, Durgan BR, Gunsolus JL. Circadian response of annual weeds in a natural setting to high and low application rates of four herbicides with different modes of action. Chronobiol Int. 2003;20:299-324. ; Stopps et al., 2013; Cieslik et al., 2014Cieslik LF, Vidal RA, Trezzi MM. Fomesafen toxicity to bean plants as a function of the time of application and herbicide dose. Acta Sci-Agron. 2014;36:329-34. ), glufosinate (Martinson et al., 2002Martinson KB, Sothern RB, Koukkari WL, Durgan BR, Gunsolus JL. Circadian response of annual weeds to glyphosate and glufosinate. Chronobiol Int. 2002;19:405-22. ; Sellers et al., 2003Sellers BA, Smeda RJ, Johnson WG. Diurnal fluctuations and leaf angle reduce glufosinate efficacy. Weed Technol. 2003;17:302-6.; Miller et al., 2003; Stewart et al., 2009; Montgomery et al., 2017Montgomery GB, Treadway JA, Reeves JL, Steckel LE. Effect of time of day of application of 2,4-d, dicamba, glufosinate, paraquat, and saflufenacil on horseweed (Conyza canadensis) control. Weed Technol. 2017;31:550-6. ), ioxynil (Skuterud et al., 1998Skuterud R, Bjugstad N, Tyldum A, Terresen KS. Effect of herbicides applied at different times of the day. Crop Prot. 1998;17:41-6. ), paraquat (Norsworthy et al., 2011Norsworthy JK, Smith KL, Griffith G. Evaluation of combinations of paraquat plus photosystem II-inhibiting herbicides for controlling failed stands of maize (Zea mays). Crop Prot. 2011;30:307-10. ), and saflufenacil (Montgomery et al., 2017) is significantly affected by the application time-of-day (TOD). As reported in the literature, weeds are more sensitive when they have been treated with the above-mentioned herbicides at night-time than at day-time. Except for fluthiacet-methyl, flumiclorac (Fausey and Renner, 2001) and ioxynil (Skuterud et al., 1998), better weed control has been achieved when herbicides were applied at night-time after sunset than at night-time before sunrise. Therefore, this background was the first reason why our study was conducted only at the time of sunrise and sunset.

Many factors can affect the application TOD effect for herbicides. It has been established that the absorption of contact herbicides, e.g. fomesafen (Cieslik et al., 2014Cieslik LF, Vidal RA, Trezzi MM. Fomesafen toxicity to bean plants as a function of the time of application and herbicide dose. Acta Sci-Agron. 2014;36:329-34. ), fluthiacet, flumiclorac (Fausey and Renner, 2001Fausey JC, Renner KA. Environmental effects on CGA-248757 and flumiclorac efficacy/soybean tolerance. Weed Sci. 2001;49:668-74.), glufosinate (Ramsey et al., 2002Ramsey RJL, Stephenson GR, Hall JC. Effect of relative humidity on the uptake, translocation, and efficacy of glufosinate ammonium in wild oat (Avena fatua). Pestic Biochem Physiol. 2002;73:1-8.), and paraquat (Preston et al., 2005Preston C, Soar CJ, Hidayat I, Greenfield KM, Powles SB. Differential translocation of paraquat in paraquat resistant populations of Hordeum leporinum. Weed Res. 2005;45:289-95. ), into the plant tissues can increase by increasing air temperature due to the fluidity of cuticle and plasma membrane can increase, resulting in a subsequent improvement in herbicide activity. Also, the absorption of contact herbicides, e.g. acifluorfen (Wills and McWhorter, 1981Wills GD, McWhorter CG. Effect of environment on the translocation and toxicity of acifluorfen to showy crotalaria (Crotalaria spectabilis). Weed Sci. 1981;29:397-401. ), fomesafen (Cieslik et al., 2014; Wichert et al., 1992Wichert RA, Bozsa R, Talbert RE, Oliver LR. Temperature and relative humidity effects on diphenyl ether herbicides. Weed Technol. 1992;6:19-24. ), bentazon (Koukkari and Johnson, 1979Koukkari WL, Johnson MA. Oscillations of leaves of Abutilon theophrasti (velvetleaf) and their sensitivity to bentazon in relation to low and high humidity. Physiol Plant. 1979;47:158-62. ), glufosinate (Ramsey et al., 2002) and lactofen (Wichert et al., 1992), into the plant tissues increases as relative humidity increases due to the prolonged drying time of spray droplets, resulting in a subsequent improvement in herbicide activity. In field conditions, diurnal fluctuation in air temperature and relative humidity is negatively correlated (Cieslik et al., 2014). Therefore, it is challenging to conclude which one is responsible for the application TOD effect for herbicides. Dew affecting the application TOD effect often occur at night-time in cool air temperature. It has been hypothesized that a run-off problem may occur when there is much dew on the leaves at the time of herbicide application, resulting in a reduction in herbicide activity. While, the drying time of spray droplets may be longer when there is little dew on the leaves at the time of herbicide application, resulting in improved herbicide activity (Stopps et al., 2013Stopps GJ, Nurse RE, Sikkema PH. The effect of time of day on the activity of postemergence soybean herbicides. Weed Technol. 2013;27:690-5. ). Wind speed effect is often lower at night-time than at day-time in summer (Waltz et al., 2004Waltz AL, Martin AR, Roeth FW, Lindquist JL. Glyphosate efficacy on velvetleaf varies with application time of day. Weed Technol. 2004;18:931-9.). It is common knowledge that the higher the wind speed, the greater the spray exo-drift (Alves et al., 2017Alves GS, Kruger GR, Cunha JPAR, Santana DG, Pinto LAT, Guimarães F, et al. Dicamba spray drift as influenced by wind speed and nozzle type. Weed Technol. 2017;31:724-31. ). As a result, the spray exo-drift can be significantly reduced with night-time applications (Stopps et al., 2013). For this reason, although its applicability is difficult, there is a recommendation to apply all types of herbicides at night-time, leading to an improvement in herbicide efficacy and/or a reduction in non-target effects (Mohr et al., 2007Mohr K, Sellers BA, Smeda RJ. Application time of day influences glyphosate efficacy. Weed Technol. 2007;21:7-13. ). On the other hand, leaf orientation at night-time (leaf angle > -90o) distinctly differs from those at day-time (leaf angle < 0o) due to the so-called foliar nyctinasty (Norsworthy et al., 1999Norsworthy JK, Oliver LR, Purcell LC. Diurnal leaf movement effects on spray interception and glyphosate efficacy. Weed Technol. 1999;13:466-70. ; Sellers et al., 2003Sellers BA, Smeda RJ, Johnson WG. Diurnal fluctuations and leaf angle reduce glufosinate efficacy. Weed Technol. 2003;17:302-6.; Mohr et al., 2007; Dalazen and Merotto Jr, 2016Dalazen G, Merotto Jr A. Physiological and genetic bases of the circadian clock in plants and their relationship with herbicides efficacy. Planta Daninha. 2016;34:191-8.), affecting spray retention on leaf surfaces and, subsequently, herbicide efficacy. Therefore, this background was the second reason why our experiment was conducted only at the time of sunrise and sunset. In this way, it will be possible to ignore two important factors affecting the application TOD effect, i.e. wind speed and leaf orientation; instead, we will focus on another factor affecting the application TOD effect, i.e. the period of dark exposure after herbicide application (Wersal et al., 2010Wersal RM, Madsen JD, Massey JH, Robles W, Cheshier JC. Comparison of daytime and night-time applications of diquat and carfentrazone-ethyl for control of parrotfeather and eurasian watermilfoil. J Aquat Plant Manage. 2010;48:56-8.). It has been well-established that the application TOD effect for herbicides is also affected by weed species (Fausey and Renner, 2001; Stopps et al., 2013; Montgomery et al., 2017Montgomery GB, Treadway JA, Reeves JL, Steckel LE. Effect of time of day of application of 2,4-d, dicamba, glufosinate, paraquat, and saflufenacil on horseweed (Conyza canadensis) control. Weed Technol. 2017;31:550-6. ) and mode of action of herbicides (Skuterud et al., 1998Skuterud R, Bjugstad N, Tyldum A, Terresen KS. Effect of herbicides applied at different times of the day. Crop Prot. 1998;17:41-6. ; Stopps et al., 2013; Montgomery et al., 2017).

So far, no study has been conducted to evaluate the application TOD effect for oxyfluorfen. Unlike previous studies in this field, the fresh weight: dry weight (FW/DW) ratio of plant was considered in this study to evaluate the application TOD effect on the activity of glufosinate, oxyfluorfen, and paraquat against various weed species. To fill these gaps in knowledge, the current study was performed to determine the best night-time to apply the three above-mentioned contact herbicides, with emphasis on the role of the period of dark exposure after herbicide application.

2 Materials and Methods

Two field experiments were conducted, one in Namivand-e-Olya village located at 34o24′10″N, 46o44′18″E, 1343 m a.s.l., Kermanshah Province, Iran (hereafter referred to as field 1) and the other in Dastjerd village located at 35o00′33″N, 48o31′34″E, 1774 m a.s.l., Hamadan Province, Iran (hereafter referred to as field 2), both where no crop was planted. In both fields, winter wheat (Triticum aestivum) had been planted in the last year. The soil in field 1 was a silty clay soil with 11% sand, 46% silt, 42% clay, 1% organic matter, and pH of 7.4; field 2 was a loam soil with 46% sand, 39% silt, 14% clay, 1% organic matter, and pH of 7.6. The fields were ploughed and disc-harrowed twice in the first week of June 2018 after applying a composted cattle manure at 10 t ha-1 and triple superphosphate 46% at 50 kg ha-1. Then, an overhead sprinkler system was applied to irrigate the field 1 and 2 every six days for a period of five and six weeks, respectively, allowing to establish natural weed populations from the soil seedbank. The field 1 was predominantly infested with Chenopodium album, Convolvulus arvensis and Solanum nigrum; while the field 2 was predominantly infested with Amaranthus retroflexus, C. album, and Malva neglecta.

In each field, the experiment was arranged in a randomized complete block design with a 3 × 2 × 2 factorial arrangement of treatments using three factors and four replications. The plot size was 2 × 4 m. The factors were comprised of herbicides with different modes of action (glufosinate 1x = 1000 g a.i. ha-1 (Basta® 20% SL, Bayer), oxyfluorfen 1x = 480 g a.i. ha-1 (Goal™ 24% EC, Dow), and paraquat 1x = 600 g a.i. ha-1 (Gramoxone® 20% SL, Syngenta)), application doses of herbicide (0.5x and 1x), and application times of day (before sunrise and after sunset). The application times of day started 15 min after sunset (20:45) on 19 and 26 July and ended 15 min before sunrise (5:45) on 20 and 27 July in the field 1 and 2, respectively. A daily cycle of 15/9 h day/night happened. In this way, the plants treated after sunset were approximately exposed period of 9 h of darkness before they were exposed to light at sunrise on the next day. In each block, a non-treated plot was included to compare the results visually but was not included in data analysis.

The weeds were 6 to 20 cm in height at the time of herbicide application. Herbicide treatments were applied with 260 L ha-1 at 300 kPa using a compressed-air-sprayer equipped with a low drift 11002-VP nozzle (Abba Spray-Jet, Italy) providing a fine spray quality ranged from 144 to 235 μm. This nozzle type was selected to ignore the factor of wind speed affecting the application TOD effect for herbicides. The atmospheric conditions at the time of herbicide application are shown in Table 1.

Table 1
Atmospheric conditions at the time of herbicide application

The aboveground plant material within four 50 × 50 cm quadrats placed in each plot was sampled at 24, 48, and 96 h after the sunrise application of paraquat, oxyfluorfen, and glufosinate, respectively. To do this, the weed species were carefully identified, clipped about 1 cm above the soil surface, and immediately weighed to obtain the fresh weight. Then, they were oven-dried at 70 oC for 48 h and reweighed to obtain the dry weight. As described by Rytwo and Tropp (2001Rytwo G, Tropp D. Improved efficiency of a divalent herbicide in the presence of clay, by addition of monovalent organocations. Appl Clay Sci. 2001;18:327-33.), the desiccation/dehydration of foliage tissues resulted from the action of herbicide can be evaluated by the FW/DW ratio having a starting range from one to up. If this ratio is equal to one, a complete desiccation of plant tissues occurred from the action of the herbicide. The larger the FW/DW ratio, the less evident is the desiccation of plant tissues.

After checking the data for normality, the non-transformed data were subjected to analysis of variance (ANOVA) using the PROC GLM in SAS software. The means were separated using the Fisher’s Least Significant Difference (LSD) at the 0.05 level.

3 Results and Discussion

In both fields, ANOVA showed that the FW/DW ratio in all weed species was significantly affected by all simple effects (mode of action of herbicide, application dose of herbicide, and application time of day). The interaction of herbicides and applied doses was significant for the FW/DW ratio of S. nigrum in field 1 and C. album in both fields. The interaction of herbicides and application time of day was significant for the FW/DW ratio of C. album in field 2. Except in the case of A. retroflexus in field 2, the interaction of applied doses and application time of day was significant for the FW/DW ratio in all weed species in both fields. In both fields, the three-way interaction was significant in all weed species.

Except for M. neglecta treated with oxyfluorfen at 480 g ha-1 (1x) in field 2 (Figure 2C), our observations in both fields showed that when the herbicides were applied at the 1x after sunset or before sunrise, no significant difference between the FW/DW ratio of weed species was observed, indicating no application TOD effect for herbicides at the 1x (Figures 1A, B, C and 2A, B). In field 1, a foliage desiccation of 77.6 and 50.5% on C. arvensis treated with paraquat, 66.2 and 53.0% on C. arvensis treated with oxyfluorfen (Figure 1A), 70.8 and 53.6% on C. album treated with paraquat, 64.4 and 59.5% on C. album treated with glufosinate (Figure 1B), 35.0 and 11.6% on S. nigrum treated with oxyfluorfen, 52.3 and 44.7% on S. nigrum treated with glufosinate, and 77.1 and 50.6% on S. nigrum treated with paraquat (Figure 1C) was detected in comparison with control when they were applied at the 0.5x after sunset and before sunrise, respectively. In field 2, a foliage desiccation of 57.3 and 34.7% on A. retroflexus treated with paraquat (Figure 2A), 67.9 and 48.2% on C. album treated with paraquat, 66.8 and 57.1% on C. album treated with oxyfluorfen, 64.5 and 57.5% on C. album treated with glufosinate (Figure 2B), 52.9 and 41.4% on M. neglecta treated with glufosinate, 71.6 and 46.9% on M. neglecta treated with paraquat, and 53.4 and 44.1% on M. neglecta treated with oxyfluorfen (Figure 2C) was detected in comparison with control when they were applied at the 0.5x after sunset and before sunrise, respectively. In the above mentioned cases in both fields, the plant tissues desiccation from the sunset applications of herbicides at the 0.5x were significantly greater than that from the sunrise applications of them at the 0.5x, indicating an application TOD effect at the 0.5x. Current results suggested the application TOD effect for tested herbicides was affected by application dose of herbicide. The application TOD effect for herbicides was more evident when they were applied at the 0.5x as compared to 1x. This finding might be related to differences in the surface tension of 0.5x and 1x spray solutions. The surface tension of spray solutions was not measured in this study; however, based on Gauvrit and Lamrani (2008Gauvrit C, Lamrani T. Influence of application volume on the efficacy of clodinafop-propargyl and fenoxaprop-P-ethyl on oats. Weed Res. 2008;48:78-84. ), the surface tension of spray solution decreased by increasing the concentration of commercial formulation of clodinafop-propargyl and fenoxaprop-P-ethyl in a fixed spray volume. It is common knowledge that the lower the surface tension of spray solution, the higher the spray coverage on the leaf surface (Castro et al., 2018Castro EB, Carbonari CA, Velini ED, Gomes GLGC, Belapart D. Influence of adjuvants on the surface tension, deposition and effectiveness of herbicides on fleabane plants. Planta Daninha. 2018;36:e018166251. ). This led us to suppose that the application TOD effect for herbicides at the 1x can be overcome with more coverage of leaf surface. In this regard, a study dealing with surfactant is needed to support or reject our hypothesis. A similar result was observed by other researchers who reported that the application TOD effect for diquat, carfentrazone-ethyl (Wersal et al., 2010Wersal RM, Madsen JD, Massey JH, Robles W, Cheshier JC. Comparison of daytime and night-time applications of diquat and carfentrazone-ethyl for control of parrotfeather and eurasian watermilfoil. J Aquat Plant Manage. 2010;48:56-8.), and glufosinate (Sellers et al., 2003Sellers BA, Smeda RJ, Johnson WG. Diurnal fluctuations and leaf angle reduce glufosinate efficacy. Weed Technol. 2003;17:302-6.) was discernible when they were applied at doses below the labeled dose. On the contrary, Miller et al. (2003Miller RP, Martinson KB, Sothern RB, Durgan BR, Gunsolus JL. Circadian response of annual weeds in a natural setting to high and low application rates of four herbicides with different modes of action. Chronobiol Int. 2003;20:299-324. ) reported that the application TOD effect for glufosinate and fomesafen did not disappear by increasing the application dose of herbicide.

Figure 1
The fresh weight: dry weight (FW/DW) ratio of Convolvulus arvensis (A), Chenopodium album (B), and Solanum nigrum (C) treated with 0.5x and 1x labeled dose of paraquat, oxyfluorfen, and glufosinate applied at sunrise or sunset in field 1 located in Namivand-e-Olya village, Kermanshah, Iran.

Figure 2
The fresh weight: dry weight (FW/DW) ratio of Amaranthus retroflexus (A), Chenopodium album (B), and Malva neglecta (C) treated with 0.5x and 1x labeled dose of paraquat, oxyfluorfen, and glufosinate applied at sunrise or sunset in field 2 located in Dastjerd, Hamadan, Iran.

Dew, wind speed (Table 1) and leaf orientation can not explain variations in herbicide activity to weeds after sunset and before sunrise. Moreover, air temperature and relative humidity at the time of herbicide application created a complex environment to interpret which one is responsible for the application TOD effect for herbicides. However, increased plant tissues desiccation from the sunset applications is most likely a result of increased herbicide absorption and translocation. Light is required to activate contact herbicides (Cobb and Reade, 2010Cobb AH, Reade JPH. Herbicides and plant physiology. [S.l.]: John Wiley and Sons; 2010.). In this study, the plants treated after sunset were allowed for a 9 h dark exposure period. A dark period following herbicide application can temporarily prevent the activation of them. As a result, it has not the potential to disrupt cell membrane, allowing more herbicide absorption at the point of contact and translocation out of the point of contact. This has been proved in case of paraquat by Preston et al. (2005Preston C, Soar CJ, Hidayat I, Greenfield KM, Powles SB. Differential translocation of paraquat in paraquat resistant populations of Hordeum leporinum. Weed Res. 2005;45:289-95. ) and oxyfluorfen by Guh et al. (1995Guh JO, Lee EK, Kuk YI, Park RD. Absorption, translocation, and metabolism of oxyfluorfen in rice (Oryza sativa) and barnyardgrass (Echinochloa crus-galli). Weed Res Japan. 1995;40:245-51. ) who reported that a dark period after herbicide application can improve herbicide absorption and translocation. For this reason, the plant tissues desiccation not be limited to the point of contact, allowing more plant tissues desiccation.

In field 1, when applications were made after sunset, only the FW/DW ratio of C. album treated with paraquat was significantly reduced (29.6%) by increasing the dose from 0.5x to 1x (Figure 1B). In field 2, when applications were made after sunset, increasing the dose of herbicides from 0.5x to 1x decreased significantly the FW/DW ratio of C. album treated with glufosinate (27.2%), C. album treated with paraquat (23.7%) (Figure 2B), M. neglecta treated with glufosinate (21.6%), and M. neglecta treated with oxyfluorfen (31.6%) (Figure 2C). These results indicated that it is more feasible to reduce the labelled doses by 50% for these three herbicides in field 1 than in filed 2. This finding might be related to differences in growth stage. In this study, the weeds were allowed to grow for a period of five and six weeks in filed 1 and 2, respectively. This is in accordance with Steckel et al. (1997Steckel GJ, Wax LM, Simmons FW, Phillips II WH. Glufosinate efficacy on annual weeds is influenced by rate and growth stage. Weed Technol. 1997;11:484-8. ) who reported that C. album has been controlled more effective with glufosinate at reduced doses when it was 10 cm than 15 cm in height.

In field 2, glufosinate applied at both doses on A. retroflexus caused a poor desiccation, varying from 2.5 to 15.0% in comparison with control (Figure 2A). So far, there was no history of glufosinate-resistant A. retroflexus in Iran. The most likely explanation for the results is that A. retroflexus is a C4 plant species having negligible rates of photorespiration. In such plant species, a starvation for the amino acid glutamine to biosynthesize proteins is the primary cause for phytotoxicity of glufosinate. While, in C3 plant species, the formation of 3CHL disrupting cell membrane is the primary cause for phytotoxicity of glufosinate (Cobb and Reade, 2010Cobb AH, Reade JPH. Herbicides and plant physiology. [S.l.]: John Wiley and Sons; 2010.; Monaco et al., 2002Monaco TJ, Weller SC, Ashton FM. Weed science: principles and practices. [S.l.]: John Wiley & Sons; 2002.). It seems that A. retroflexus in this study did not have enough time to show treatment effects because it takes a relatively longer time for glufosinate to kill C4 plant species than C3 plant species (Wendler et al., 1990Wendler C, Barniske M, Wild A. Effect of phosphinothricin (glufosinate) on photosynthesis and photorespiration of C3 and C4 plants. Photosynth Res. 1990;24:55-61. ).

In conclusion, the most notable observation, except for C. album treated with paraquat (Figure 1B) in field 1 and C. album treated with glufosinate (Figure 2B), and M. neglecta treated with oxyfluorfen (Figure 2C) in field 2, was that all herbicides applied either at the 0.5x after sunset or at the 1x before sunrise resulted in similar FW/DW ratio in all weed species. Current results suggested the application of appropriately timed glufosinate, paraquat, and oxyfluorfen can be used to improve the activity of them against the target species, resulting in a reduction in non-target effects of them.

4 Conclusions

The application time of day effect for glufosinate, oxyfluorfen, and paraquat was dose-dependent. The application TOD effect for the herbicides was more evident when they were applied at the 0.5x as compared to 1x. They were more active at night-time applications than at day-time ones. At night-time applications, the application after sunset is preferable to the application before sunrise. If contact herbicides are used at night-time after sunset, it is possible to take advantage of their reduced doses.

5 Contributions

AA, GA, and BEM: contributed to the design and implementation of the research, to the analysis of the results and to the writing of the manuscript.

6 Acknowledgements

This work was funded by a grant from the Bu-Ali Sina University.

7 References

  • Ahn Y, Kim Y, Yoo J. Toxicity of the herbicide glufosinate-ammonium to predatory insects and mites of Tetranychus urticae (Acari: tetranychidae) under laboratory conditions. Econ Entomol. 2001;94:157-61.
  • Alves GS, Kruger GR, Cunha JPAR, Santana DG, Pinto LAT, Guimarães F, et al. Dicamba spray drift as influenced by wind speed and nozzle type. Weed Technol. 2017;31:724-31.
  • Cieslik LF, Vidal RA, Trezzi MM. Fomesafen toxicity to bean plants as a function of the time of application and herbicide dose. Acta Sci-Agron. 2014;36:329-34.
  • Carpenter D, Boutin C. Sublethal effects of the herbicide glufosinate ammonium on crops and wild plants: Short-term effects compared to vegetative recovery and plant reproduction. Ecotoxicol. 2010;19:1322-36.
  • Castro EB, Carbonari CA, Velini ED, Gomes GLGC, Belapart D. Influence of adjuvants on the surface tension, deposition and effectiveness of herbicides on fleabane plants. Planta Daninha. 2018;36:e018166251.
  • Cobb AH, Reade JPH. Herbicides and plant physiology. [S.l.]: John Wiley and Sons; 2010.
  • Dalazen G, Merotto Jr A. Physiological and genetic bases of the circadian clock in plants and their relationship with herbicides efficacy. Planta Daninha. 2016;34:191-8.
  • Fausey JC, Renner KA. Environmental effects on CGA-248757 and flumiclorac efficacy/soybean tolerance. Weed Sci. 2001;49:668-74.
  • Gauvrit C, Lamrani T. Influence of application volume on the efficacy of clodinafop-propargyl and fenoxaprop-P-ethyl on oats. Weed Res. 2008;48:78-84.
  • Guh JO, Lee EK, Kuk YI, Park RD. Absorption, translocation, and metabolism of oxyfluorfen in rice (Oryza sativa) and barnyardgrass (Echinochloa crus-galli). Weed Res Japan. 1995;40:245-51.
  • Koukkari WL, Johnson MA. Oscillations of leaves of Abutilon theophrasti (velvetleaf) and their sensitivity to bentazon in relation to low and high humidity. Physiol Plant. 1979;47:158-62.
  • Kudsk P. Optimising herbicide dose: a straightforward approach to reduce the risk of side effects of herbicides. Environmentalist. 2008;28:49-55.
  • Lee SD, Oliver LR. Efficacy of aciflurofen on broadleaf weeds: times and methods for application. Weed Sci. 1982;30:520-6.
  • Martinson KB, Sothern RB, Koukkari WL, Durgan BR, Gunsolus JL. Circadian response of annual weeds to glyphosate and glufosinate. Chronobiol Int. 2002;19:405-22.
  • Miller RP, Martinson KB, Sothern RB, Durgan BR, Gunsolus JL. Circadian response of annual weeds in a natural setting to high and low application rates of four herbicides with different modes of action. Chronobiol Int. 2003;20:299-324.
  • Mohr K, Sellers BA, Smeda RJ. Application time of day influences glyphosate efficacy. Weed Technol. 2007;21:7-13.
  • Monaco TJ, Weller SC, Ashton FM. Weed science: principles and practices. [S.l.]: John Wiley & Sons; 2002.
  • Montgomery GB, Treadway JA, Reeves JL, Steckel LE. Effect of time of day of application of 2,4-d, dicamba, glufosinate, paraquat, and saflufenacil on horseweed (Conyza canadensis) control. Weed Technol. 2017;31:550-6.
  • Norsworthy JK, Oliver LR, Purcell LC. Diurnal leaf movement effects on spray interception and glyphosate efficacy. Weed Technol. 1999;13:466-70.
  • Norsworthy JK, Smith KL, Griffith G. Evaluation of combinations of paraquat plus photosystem II-inhibiting herbicides for controlling failed stands of maize (Zea mays). Crop Prot. 2011;30:307-10.
  • PANI. List of highly hazardous pesticides. Pesticide Action Network International, 2018.
  • Preston C, Soar CJ, Hidayat I, Greenfield KM, Powles SB. Differential translocation of paraquat in paraquat resistant populations of Hordeum leporinum Weed Res. 2005;45:289-95.
  • Prosser RS, Anderson JC, Hanson ML, Solomon KR, Sibley PK. Indirect effects of herbicides on biota in terrestrial edge-of-field habitats: a critical review of the literature. Agric Ecosyst Environ. 2016;232:59-72.
  • Ramsey RJL, Stephenson GR, Hall JC. Effect of relative humidity on the uptake, translocation, and efficacy of glufosinate ammonium in wild oat (Avena fatua). Pestic Biochem Physiol. 2002;73:1-8.
  • Rytwo G, Tropp D. Improved efficiency of a divalent herbicide in the presence of clay, by addition of monovalent organocations. Appl Clay Sci. 2001;18:327-33.
  • Sellers BA, Smeda RJ, Johnson WG. Diurnal fluctuations and leaf angle reduce glufosinate efficacy. Weed Technol. 2003;17:302-6.
  • Shrestha A, deSouza LL, Yang P, Sosnoskie L, Hanson BD. Differential tolerance of glyphosate-susceptible and glyphosate-resistant biotypes of junglerice (Echinochloa colona) to environments during germination, growth, and intraspecific competition. Weed Sci. 2018;66:340-6.
  • Sims B, Corsi S, Gbehounou G, Kienzle J, Taguchi M, Friedrich T. Sustainable weed management for conservation agriculture: options for smallholder farmers. Agri. 2018;8(8):118p. https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture8080118
  • Skuterud R, Bjugstad N, Tyldum A, Terresen KS. Effect of herbicides applied at different times of the day. Crop Prot. 1998;17:41-6.
  • Steckel GJ, Wax LM, Simmons FW, Phillips II WH. Glufosinate efficacy on annual weeds is influenced by rate and growth stage. Weed Technol. 1997;11:484-8.
  • Stewart CL, Nurse RE, Sikkema PH. Time of day impacts POST weed control in corn. Weed Technol. 2009;23:346-55.
  • Stopps GJ, Nurse RE, Sikkema PH. The effect of time of day on the activity of postemergence soybean herbicides. Weed Technol. 2013;27:690-5.
  • UN. Report of the Special Rapporteur on the right to food. United Nations, General Assembly, Human Rights Council, A/HRC/34/48. 2017.
  • Waltz AL, Martin AR, Roeth FW, Lindquist JL. Glyphosate efficacy on velvetleaf varies with application time of day. Weed Technol. 2004;18:931-9.
  • Wersal RM, Madsen JD, Massey JH, Robles W, Cheshier JC. Comparison of daytime and night-time applications of diquat and carfentrazone-ethyl for control of parrotfeather and eurasian watermilfoil. J Aquat Plant Manage. 2010;48:56-8.
  • Wichert RA, Bozsa R, Talbert RE, Oliver LR. Temperature and relative humidity effects on diphenyl ether herbicides. Weed Technol. 1992;6:19-24.
  • Wills GD, McWhorter CG. Effect of environment on the translocation and toxicity of acifluorfen to showy crotalaria (Crotalaria spectabilis). Weed Sci. 1981;29:397-401.
  • WSSA. Common and chemical names of herbicides approved by the Weed Science Society of America. Weed Sci. 2012;60:650-7.
  • Wendler C, Barniske M, Wild A. Effect of phosphinothricin (glufosinate) on photosynthesis and photorespiration of C3 and C4 plants. Photosynth Res. 1990;24:55-61.
  • Zhang J, Zheng L, Jäck O, Yan D, Zhang Z, Gerhards R, et al. Efficacy of four post-emergence herbicides applied at reduced doses on weeds in summer maize (Zea mays L.) fields in North China Plain. Crop Prot. 2013;52:26-32.
  • Zhao J, Neher DA, Fu S, Li Z, Wang K. Non-target effects of herbicides on soil nematode assemblages. Pest Manag Sci. 2013;69:679-84.

Publication Dates

  • Publication in this collection
    16 Oct 2020
  • Date of issue
    2020

History

  • Received
    22 Mar 2019
  • Accepted
    14 June 2019
Sociedade Brasileira da Ciência das Plantas Daninhas Departamento de Fitotecnia - DFT, Universidade Federal de Viçosa - UFV, 36570-000 - Viçosa-MG - Brasil, Tel./Fax::(+55 31) 3899-2611 - Viçosa - MG - Brazil
E-mail: rpdaninha@gmail.com