Despite the increasing potential for rain this week, California remains poised to experience exceptional drought conditions in 2014. Under prolonged periods of dry weather, weed control is likely to suffer. This is especially troubling for growers as both crops and weeds will be competing to capture limited soil moisture, which could result in significant yield losses.

Although fewer weed seeds may germinate under dry conditions, weeds that do emerge and become established may be more difficult to manage with herbicides. Drought-stressed weeds are likely to have thicker cuticles (which is the waxy coating on the surface of the leaf), which can inhibit the absorption of post-emergence products. Additionally, plant architecture...

Agriculture is under pressure from regulations, as well as environmental and economic issues. In 2013 there were also widespread labor shortages in the Salinas Valley. These issues put pressure on growers to adapt and resolve each of these problems. Fortunately, new technological developments can provide solutions to some of the issues that growers face. In 2013, four companies developed automated thinners for use in lettuce production (photos 1-4). These machines came at a fortuitous time for growers and provided one solution for dealing with labor shortages.

The thinners use a camera to capture images of the lettuce stand and a computer to process the images and make decisions on what plants to remove and which to keep (photo...

While conducting a field experiment testing herbicides for control of sahara mustard in Borrego Springs in 2011, out of a corner of my eye I saw a ring of rusty brown around an ant hole. 

Being curious I looked closer. It was an organized mound that was maybe 1 inch high and 3 inches across of redstem filaree (Erodium cicutarium) fruit. It was exclusively filaree, nothing else. 

So I explored a little more on my knees and saw these small black ants a foot or so away on a well-beaten trail. Most of the ants had a filaree fruit in its mouth. I don't know the species of ant, but a quick Google search suggests that it is a species of...

A POSTDOCTORAL RESEARCHER position in the Dept. of Plant Sciences & Plant Biology opened up at Montana State University. Screening of applications will begin on FEBRUARY 18, 2014 and will continue to be accepted until an adequate pool is established.

Overview

We seek a highly motivated candidate to coordinate a 3 year project that evaluates 1) the re-integration of crop and livestock production in organic cropping systems, and 2) the role of mite-transmitted wheat viruses in mediating crop-weed competitive interactions. The successful candidate will be part of two multidisciplinary regional projects aimed at increasing our understanding of...