When growing strawberries, weeds in the strawberry patch must be controlled diligently

Strawberry plants are low-growing and planted at high density, making weed control difficult. In addition, because strawberry patches receive large amounts of base fertilizer and irrigation water, weeds grow abundantly. Weed damage can cause strawberry yields to drop by about 15%-20%. Therefore, attention should be paid to weed control and integrated control measures should be adopted.

1. Manual weeding. Manual weeding is essential in strawberry production and is often carried out together with intertillage loosening of the soil and moisture conservation. During the annual growth cycle of strawberries, intertillage and weeding should be carried out in three periods. The first is after planting and before overwintering. The second is in the following spring, after strawberries sprout and before flowering and fruiting, when intertillage loosening of the soil is done to conserve moisture and raise soil temperature, or shallow hoeing is done after fertilizing and irrigating. The third is after strawberry harvest, when temperatures gradually rise and rainfall increases, and both strawberries and weeds enter a period of vigorous growth; this is the key period for weed control.

2. Plastic film mulching. Shape the bed surface into a turtle-back form, with a bed height of 10-15 cm and a bed width of 50-60 cm, and cover it with black plastic film, which has a good weed-prevention effect. Covering with transparent film also has a certain weed-suppressing effect, but transparent film easily causes premature senescence of strawberry plants.

3. Chemical weed control with herbicides. 48% trifluralin emulsifiable concentrate is very effective against the germinating seeds of many annual grasses and broadleaf weeds, such as purslane, Salsola collina, lamb's quarters, and Polygonum species. The method of use is to spray 150 ml of 48% trifluralin per mu after strawberry transplanting, mixed with 50 L of water, and immediately cover with soil after application to prevent photodegradation. For post-emergence treatment, 24% lactofen can kill common broadleaf weeds in strawberry patches such as purslane, black nightshade, Artemisia annua, lamb's quarters, and cocklebur. Using 12.50% haloxyfop emulsifiable concentrate or 35% fluazifop can control grass weeds. The number of spray applications should be determined according to the amount of weeds present, generally 1-2 applications.