Competitive ability of cereal cultivars with green foxtail

Abstract

Interactions occur among plants in their struggle to obtain resources for growth and development. The outcome of these interactions is assessed in terms of competitive ability. A study was conducted in 1991 and 1992 to determine whether differences exist in the competitive ability of Waldern oat, Riel oat, Calibre oat, Harrington barley, CDC Makwa wheat, Gazelle rye and wild oat with low and high densities of green foxtail. At the low density of green foxtail, Harrington barley proved to be the superior competitor in 1991 whereas in 1992 there were no differences between the crop treatments. In 1991, at the high green foxtail density, Harrington barley was superior to all other crop cultivars except CDC Makwa wheat. In 1992 Harrington barley and wild oat proved to be the most competitive at the high green foxtail density. Studies such as this can provide valuable information to be applied to integrated weed management systems.