SURVEY ON THE CONTRIBUTION OF WEED BIOLOTY HERBICIDES TO WEED MANAGEMENT IN THE UK

This survey was conducted in early 1993 in response to a similar surve y in the USA. The total sample size was 112 and 86 questionnaires were returned - a response rate of 77%. The contribution of weed biology k nowledge in the improvement of weed control technology was rated as 's ubstantial' or 'high' by 57% of respondents. The three topics of plant biology expected to make the greatest contribution to weed management in the future were (1) competition/interference, (2) dynamics of seed banks, (3) dormancy/germination. However, the three topics that were predicted to become relatively more important in the future (compared with the present) were (1) genetics/evolution, (2) interactions with o ther organisms, (3) computer modelling. With reference to herbicide us age, most respondents expect the use of herbicides in terms of area tr eated or number of applications to remain at about the same level as a t present, or to decline slightly, during the next 10 years. They expe ct a much larger decrease in the tonnage of herbicides used. The use o f conventional herbicides is expected to remain considerably more impo rtant than non-herbicidal methods of weed control. Only one respondent expected non-herbicidal control methods to become relatively more imp ortant than conventional herbicides by the year 2003. These results ar e compared with a similar survey conducted in the USA in 1991.