Wheat Response and Weed-Suppressive Ability in the Field Application of a Nanoencapsulated Disulfide (DiS-NH<sub>2</sub>) Bioherbicide Mimic

Improving the efficacy of bioherbicides to overcome weed resistance phenomena is one of the main challenges within agriculture. Organic encapsulation is attracting attention as an alternative and eco-friendly tool, mainly in organic farming. In this research, for the first time, across three differe...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Aurelio Scavo, Francisco J. R. Mejías, Nuria Chinchilla, José M. G. Molinillo, Stefan Schwaiger, Sara Lombardo, Francisco A. Macías, Giovanni Mauromicale
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2023-04-01
Series:Agronomy
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/13/4/1132
Description
Summary:Improving the efficacy of bioherbicides to overcome weed resistance phenomena is one of the main challenges within agriculture. Organic encapsulation is attracting attention as an alternative and eco-friendly tool, mainly in organic farming. In this research, for the first time, across three different wheat field trials, we tested the weed-suppressive ability (WSA) and crop response of a nanoparticle formulation of DiS-NH<sub>2</sub> (2,2′-disulfanediyldianiline) applied as post-emergence foliar herbicide, both at standard (T1, 0.75 g m<sup>−2</sup>) and double dosages (T2, 1.5 g m<sup>−2</sup>), compared to no weeding (NC) and chemical weed control (PC). Averaged over locations, T2 showed the highest WSA (51.3%), followed by T1 (40.9%) and PC (33.5%). T2 induced also a wheat grain yield and a plant height comparable to PC (3185 kg ha<sup>−1</sup> and 67.7 cm vs. 3153 kg ha<sup>−1</sup> and 67.7 cm, respectively). Moreover, compared to NC, T2 increased the number of spikes m<sup>−2</sup> (+19%) and the number of kernel spikes<sup>−1</sup> (+26%). Similar results were observed for T1, which caused also a significant reduction in non-vitreous kernels (‒40%). These promising results suggest that the nanoencapsulated DiS-NH<sub>2</sub> could be a good candidate as a post-emergence bioherbicide in wheat crop production.
ISSN:2073-4395