Canadian professional herb

Profile

Canadian professional weed was introduced to Europe from North America (Canada) in the 17th century. Until now, the plant has occurred rather rarely as a weed in crop stands. Recently, however, conspicuously larger occurrences have been observed in fields.

Appearance

The plant can occur as a summer, winter or biennial. In late spring, around mid-May, a single-shoot, erect shoot forms from the rosettes, branching at the top and reaching a height of 30 to 100 (-150) cm. The leaves of the adult plant are linear to lanceolate, up to 10 cm long and up to 2 cm wide and loosely toothed.

Distribution

The plant is undemanding, drought tolerant and requires light. In Austria, the Canadian professional weed is widespread and occurs in all provinces. The species mainly colonizes sites such as wasteland, rubble piles and railroad yards. In annual crop stands, Canada bindweed has hardly been observed so far, but observations show that the species occurs increasingly especially in soybean and sugar beet (e.g. in the Weinviertel) and occasionally in cereals. In viticulture and orchards, the plant is more common as a weed.

Spread

The spread of the species takes place through seeds. A single plant can produce up to 100,000 seeds. The fruits are crowned with hairs and can be dispersed by wind up to 500 m from the seed source.

Economic importance

Significant yield losses can occur in fields. For example, studies have shown that soybean yields drop by up to 40% when Canada bindweed is left uncontrolled. In orchards and vineyards, yields can be reduced due to water and nutrient deprivation. In addition, the plants interfere with maintenance and harvesting operations as they grow into the tree crown and vine, respectively.

Prevention and control

Last updated: 10.09.2024

automatically translated