Weed management practices in the Cordillera Weed in ricefields and camotal lands are eliminated controlled water flow and elevated planting. It also allowed the planting of different spices and vegetables for home use. But in most cases manual weeding is done and herbs are not plucked off the ground but instead allowed to grow. Farmers developed a multistorey farming system in which they practised fallowing, intercropping and selective weeding. Young crops do not provide ground cover. The farmers understood that, if weeds are left to grow, they cover the soil, prevent it from heating up or drying out excessively, induce a positive competition which stimulates crop growth, and reduce erosion during rainfall. Later in the season, when the farmers regarded weed competition as negative for crop growth, they did superficial hoeing. They left the weeds on the soil surface as protective mulch, to recycle nutrients and to allow nitrogen assimilation through the bacteria decomposing the plants. The crops could then develop fully. A second generation of weeds was allowed to cover the field completely and produce seed, so as to ensure their reproduction in future seasons. When the dry season started, the field was covered with high weeds. The soil remained moist, soft and rich in humus and was thus in good condition for the next growing season. However, the introduction of the principle of weedfree fields led to the collapse of this system of weed-tolerant cropping, so that fertiliser became necessary to replace the green-manuring effect of selective weeding (Egger 1987).
Posted on: Sat, 15 Mar 2014 20:32:47 +0000
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