WEED COMMUNITY ECOLOGY - TEDIOUS SAMPLING OR RELEVANT SCIENCE - A CANADIAN PERSPECTIVE

The study of weed community ecology involves aspects of species life f orms, diversity, and spatial and temporal variability. Previously, Can adian research in this area focused on weed surveys, while recent rese arch has been conducted on community composition as influenced by till age system and crop rotation. New techniques in multivariate ordinatio n have been used to analyse weeds at a community rather than a species level, with a resultant new understanding of community dynamics. Alth ough the study of weed community ecology often involves tedious sampli ng, increased research in this area would provide the basis for the de velopment of effective integrated weed management strategies. This pap er discusses aspects of weed community ecology in light of Canadian re search and makes recommendations for future studies.