FI111124B - A growth forecast box for estimating the need to control weeds - Google Patents

Description

111124

Growth prediction box to anticipate weed control needs

The invention relates to a plant growth prediction box which enables a farmer to monitor the growth and development of weeds, anticipate the need for plant protection measures, and evaluate the use of the right and sufficient active ingredients to control weed species. The invention also relates to a method for predicting the need for weeds toqunt.

10 Cultivation is a combination of many measures. Achieving high yields requires timely and effective implementation of these different measures and consideration of plant-specific requirements. Herbicide treatments are one part of this whole. In addition to preventive cultivation and mechanical methods, there are various chemical herbicides that are used when other means are inadequate.

Plant protection is based on design that draws on previous years' experience and knowledge of cultivation, pests and weeds. The choice of plant protection product and its application rate as well as the choice of the right time for spraying 20 are influenced by a number of factors such as controlling the plant disease or rich plant and its growth rate, crop, growth rate and crop condition, soil quality and humidity and weather conditions, e.g. , long rainy season or drought.

25 Of the 600 species of weeds in our country, 60 are classified as very harmful and 100 as quite harmful. The most common weeds found in our fields are, for example, common wheat, oatmeal, flour, goat, field thistle and sauna flower. In addition to seeds, weeds have several other means of reproduction, such as rhizomes, runners, sprouts, root shoots or germination.

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Herbicide manufacturers provide general crop-weed-specific, dosing and application-specific guidelines that do not, however, be responsible for the environment, the environment, or the user, as required by current legislation or EU environmental subsidies (Sprayer Handbook, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, 1996). safe injection of leachate is often not feasible at the parcel level.

Herbicide control nowadays requires the farmer, in addition to mechanical tillage and other weed control methods such as crop rotation and delayed sowing, to perform the necessary crop spraying with the pesticide. Spraying is carried out fairly routinely and the farmer relies on his previous experience and memory of the weed condition of previous growing seasons in selecting the pesticide and the time of spraying, often without further analysis of the weed species, weed density or growth rate.

The reduction in the use of pesticides on a farm basis, which is also a condition for receiving environmental aid, requires continuous monitoring of the crop, alert service and control thresholds. For plant diseases and pests 15 the need for control is already foreseeable, but not in the case of weeds.

The economic threshold for control is reached when the value of the crop losses due to weeds can be estimated to be higher than the cost of combating them. In addition to the abundance of weeds, the weed species also affects the threshold, which varies greatly. The threshold value, weed seedlings / m, is pre-2 t 2 2 for the mat 1 seedlings / m, for the weeds 25 weights / m and for the clay weed 45 plants / m.

According to current practice, the success of weed control can be evaluated ex-post and the knowledge and experience gained can only be used in the next growing season. In addition, a spray window, called the zero screen, has been used to evaluate the success of the control result. Spray window refers to a small area of the field that has not been treated with pesticide. The spray window provides information on weed numbers, species and changes in weed growth during the growing season. Even this information can only be really utilized in the next growing season

The present invention, which relates to a weed growth prediction box and a method for predicting the need for weed control, provides a simple and inexpensive method for monitoring the growth and development of weeds and helps to control the timely application of both herbicides and quality.

In the growth prediction box, under favorable temperature and humidity conditions, both the crop and the weed sprout and seedlings grow faster than the field outside the box. The first step involves identifying the weed species growing in the box, determining the density of the species, and selecting the nutrient or mixture of nutrients. In the next step, the date of the pesticide will be specified based on the heat sum determined inside and outside the box.

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The growth projection box according to the invention is formed, as shown in Figure 1, by four side walls (2 and 3) and a roof plate (1) of any size, which are any natural light transmission material commonly used as a roofing material for greenhouses. The side walls have a sufficient number of vents (5). In addition, the ceiling panel or, alternatively, a side wall may have a passage (6) for a thermometer for measuring the temperature of the interior of the box and possibly another through or other mounting structure for mounting a thermometer for measuring the outside temperature of the box.

The invention is defined in detail in the claims.

One or more growth prediction boxes are placed on the crop immediately after establishment of the crop (after sowing or immediately after planting the seedlings). One or more areas corresponding to the average conditions of the culture are selected as the site.

The average daily temperature is measured inside and outside the box to calculate the total heat accumulation. Temperature data is collected either manually or, more preferably, automatically into the data acquisition unit using the 30 technologies available (data loggers, radios, computers, solar cells, etc.), where the actual heat sum calculation as the cumulative sum of sowing day and observation day is performed over That is, if the average daily temperature is + 15 ° C, the heat sum for the day is + 10 ° C.

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The size of the growth prediction box can be selected freely, but preferably the area of its bottom (4) is for example 1/5 m, 1/4 m, or 1/2 m. Thus, the control threshold, i.e. the total number of weed seedlings growing per square meter,

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The herbicide species can also be identified and their distribution within the study area will further determine the choice of the most suitable herbicide (active ingredient) or possibly herbicidal mixtures.

When the weeds have reached the most favorable growth rate for the species within the growth prediction box, the heat sum of the period measured inside the box is read. This critical heat sum value is used as information for pre-15 when the best time for control effectiveness is achieved outside the box, under actual growing conditions, i.e. when the above critical temperature sum is reached outside the box.

Depending on the growth conditions, the weed growth forecast box gives you a few days from 20 to a week to refine your control decision and action. The device of the invention thus improves the farmer's decision-making capabilities for more proactive and economical weed control, but also reduces the field's crop load, since control can be targeted to the most sensitive growth stage of the crop, utilizing the best 25 crop active ingredients and thus avoiding routines. pan save.

Claims (4)

111124 A growth growth box for anticipating the need for weed control, characterized in that it comprises a light transmission cover growth growth box 5 comprising a roof (1) and a wall or walls (2 and 3) and a thermometer for measuring inside and outside temperature of the box with ventilation holes (5). A growth growth box according to claim 1, characterized in that the box structure has a lead-through (6) or other fastening means for attaching a thermometer for measuring the inside temperature of the box and for measuring the outside temperature of the box. A growth box according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the thermometer is part of an automatic data acquisition unit. 15 A method for monitoring the growth and development of weeds and for predicting the timely use of active ingredients of optimum quality and quantity for the treatment of weeds, characterized in that: a) a growth-prediction box comprising a roof (1) and a wall is provided; or walls (2, 3) and provided with vents (5), (b) measuring the temperature inside and outside the growth forecast box daily and determining the daily heat sum accumulation, (c) determining the critical heat sum in the growth forecast bin at a time when 25 (d) optimizing the active ingredient and amount of the propellant on the basis of the weed data from the growth prediction box; 111124