Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Cape May County will host a free, virtual presentation for farmers:
Tools for Weed Identification and Management
Thursday, March 14, 2024
6:00 to 7:00 p.m
The presenter will be Thierry E. Besançon, PhD, Associate Professor and Extension Weed Science Specialist for Specialty Crops, Rutgers University, Philip E. Marucci Center for Blueberry and Cranberry Research and Extension.
The informational talk, geared to local farmers, will review some of the available tools (books, apps, etc.) for helping with identification of weeds, cover nonchemical and chemical strategies for controlling weeds, and talk about what the future of weed management looks like.
Advanced registration for this presentation is required. To register, go to: https://go.rutgers.edu/xsvkelyg. You will receive the zoom meeting invitation with your registration confirmation.
For more information, please call 609-465-5115, ext. 3615 or email capemayag@njaes.rutgers.edu.
Weed management in vegetables can be difficult due to a shrinking labor pool, which is becoming more costly to source, and a lack of effective herbicides. Research and extension efforts must focus on integrating novel weed technology into current crop production systems. Autonomous and semi-autonomous robotic weed control technology has been implemented by some vegetable growers, mainly in the Western US, but is not universally available to or adapted by many producers. This survey is designed to new tools of interest (e.g. precision sprayers or cultivators, electrical weeders, drones, etc.) for managing weeds in cole crop and leafy green systems as well as the environmental, physical and economic barriers to adoption. The results of this survey will benefit vegetable growers by enabling the research team to develop relevant and realistic research efforts informed by the needs of and constraints faced by our local stakeholders. Specifically, we will use survey data to develop a multi-regional USDA grant proposal to bring grower-specified technology to each our states for evaluation and demonstration under a variety of commercial conditions and provide growers with an economic assessment of their performance relative to current best management practices.
