Allelopathic weed control in Conservation Agriculture systems

Allelopathy involves release of chemicals from plant roots that can inhibit or promote the growth of other organisms. Allelopathic interactions can be exploited to control weeds in agroecosystems. Conservation Agriculture (CA) characterized by minimum tillage, soil cover, and diversified crop rotation, provides a potentially promising habitat for weeds, making weed control a major challenge for CA systems. Allelopathy can offer an eco-friendly weed management option. This chapter discusses different allopathic strategies to overcome weed challenges in CA. These strategies include mulching, crop rotation, intercropping, cover crops, the application of natural allopathic extracts, and the development and use of crop varieties with weed-suppressive abilities.