Effects of Weeding Frequency on the Yield and Quality of <i>Glycyrrhiza uralensis</i> Fisch in an Arid and Semi-Arid Area of Northwest China
Weeds interfere with agricultural production activities worldwide and have a very serious impact on agriculture and animal husbandry. Identifying a safe and reliable weed control strategy may increase the yield and production net income, and improve crop quality. Licorice is one of the most popular...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2024-02-01
|
| Series: | Agronomy |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/14/3/433 |
| _version_ | 1797242400294305792 |
|---|---|
| author | Dongqing Wang Bin Ma Hua Liu Yangmei Bao Ying Niu Ming Li |
| author_facet | Dongqing Wang Bin Ma Hua Liu Yangmei Bao Ying Niu Ming Li |
| author_sort | Dongqing Wang |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Weeds interfere with agricultural production activities worldwide and have a very serious impact on agriculture and animal husbandry. Identifying a safe and reliable weed control strategy may increase the yield and production net income, and improve crop quality. Licorice is one of the most popular traditional Chinese herbal medicines and has been used for over 2000 years in China. Liquiritin and glycyrrhizic acid are crucial active ingredients. A field experiment was carried out to explore the effects of weeding frequency on the yield and quality of <i>Glycyrrhiza uralensis</i> Fisch in an arid and semi-arid area of northwest China. The experiment consisted of seven treatments: (1) no weeding, marked as WF0, and (2)–(7) artificial weeding using a hoe once every 1, 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 weeks after emergence, marked as WF1, WF2, WF4, WF6, WF8 and WF10, respectively. We found that a higher weeding frequency resulted in greater plant height, photosynthesis, yield and quality. The highest yield was obtained when the WF1 treatment was applied, while the cost of weeding was high among all treatments. The concentrations of liquiritin and glycyrrhizic acid were increased by 53.24% and 36.57%, with the highest nitrogen metabolism enzymatic activities and quality observed when the WF4 treatment was applied. The WF4 treatment resulted in the largest increase in the net income among all treatments in both growing seasons, with respective increases of up to 71.39% and 78.81%. These findings suggest that weeding once every four weeks could be an effective and sustainable measure to control weeds in an arid and semi-arid area. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-24T18:38:37Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-378f04803ed1459c8debd4ea8dd1d769 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2073-4395 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-24T18:38:37Z |
| publishDate | 2024-02-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Agronomy |
| spelling | doaj.art-378f04803ed1459c8debd4ea8dd1d7692024-03-27T13:16:31ZengMDPI AGAgronomy2073-43952024-02-0114343310.3390/agronomy14030433Effects of Weeding Frequency on the Yield and Quality of <i>Glycyrrhiza uralensis</i> Fisch in an Arid and Semi-Arid Area of Northwest ChinaDongqing Wang0Bin Ma1Hua Liu2Yangmei Bao3Ying Niu4Ming Li5Institute of Forestry and Grassland Ecology, Ningxia Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, Yinchuan 750002, ChinaInstitute of Forestry and Grassland Ecology, Ningxia Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, Yinchuan 750002, ChinaInstitute of Forestry and Grassland Ecology, Ningxia Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, Yinchuan 750002, ChinaSchool of Chinese Materia Medica, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing 102488, ChinaInstitute of Forestry and Grassland Ecology, Ningxia Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, Yinchuan 750002, ChinaInstitute of Forestry and Grassland Ecology, Ningxia Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, Yinchuan 750002, ChinaWeeds interfere with agricultural production activities worldwide and have a very serious impact on agriculture and animal husbandry. Identifying a safe and reliable weed control strategy may increase the yield and production net income, and improve crop quality. Licorice is one of the most popular traditional Chinese herbal medicines and has been used for over 2000 years in China. Liquiritin and glycyrrhizic acid are crucial active ingredients. A field experiment was carried out to explore the effects of weeding frequency on the yield and quality of <i>Glycyrrhiza uralensis</i> Fisch in an arid and semi-arid area of northwest China. The experiment consisted of seven treatments: (1) no weeding, marked as WF0, and (2)–(7) artificial weeding using a hoe once every 1, 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 weeks after emergence, marked as WF1, WF2, WF4, WF6, WF8 and WF10, respectively. We found that a higher weeding frequency resulted in greater plant height, photosynthesis, yield and quality. The highest yield was obtained when the WF1 treatment was applied, while the cost of weeding was high among all treatments. The concentrations of liquiritin and glycyrrhizic acid were increased by 53.24% and 36.57%, with the highest nitrogen metabolism enzymatic activities and quality observed when the WF4 treatment was applied. The WF4 treatment resulted in the largest increase in the net income among all treatments in both growing seasons, with respective increases of up to 71.39% and 78.81%. These findings suggest that weeding once every four weeks could be an effective and sustainable measure to control weeds in an arid and semi-arid area.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/14/3/433antioxidant enzymesnitrogen metabolism enzymesphotosynthetic physiologysustainable agriculturethe optimal ratio of medicinal materials and weeds |
| spellingShingle | Dongqing Wang Bin Ma Hua Liu Yangmei Bao Ying Niu Ming Li Effects of Weeding Frequency on the Yield and Quality of <i>Glycyrrhiza uralensis</i> Fisch in an Arid and Semi-Arid Area of Northwest China Agronomy antioxidant enzymes nitrogen metabolism enzymes photosynthetic physiology sustainable agriculture the optimal ratio of medicinal materials and weeds |
| title | Effects of Weeding Frequency on the Yield and Quality of <i>Glycyrrhiza uralensis</i> Fisch in an Arid and Semi-Arid Area of Northwest China |
| title_full | Effects of Weeding Frequency on the Yield and Quality of <i>Glycyrrhiza uralensis</i> Fisch in an Arid and Semi-Arid Area of Northwest China |
| title_fullStr | Effects of Weeding Frequency on the Yield and Quality of <i>Glycyrrhiza uralensis</i> Fisch in an Arid and Semi-Arid Area of Northwest China |
| title_full_unstemmed | Effects of Weeding Frequency on the Yield and Quality of <i>Glycyrrhiza uralensis</i> Fisch in an Arid and Semi-Arid Area of Northwest China |
| title_short | Effects of Weeding Frequency on the Yield and Quality of <i>Glycyrrhiza uralensis</i> Fisch in an Arid and Semi-Arid Area of Northwest China |
| title_sort | effects of weeding frequency on the yield and quality of i glycyrrhiza uralensis i fisch in an arid and semi arid area of northwest china |
| topic | antioxidant enzymes nitrogen metabolism enzymes photosynthetic physiology sustainable agriculture the optimal ratio of medicinal materials and weeds |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/14/3/433 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT dongqingwang effectsofweedingfrequencyontheyieldandqualityofiglycyrrhizauralensisifischinanaridandsemiaridareaofnorthwestchina AT binma effectsofweedingfrequencyontheyieldandqualityofiglycyrrhizauralensisifischinanaridandsemiaridareaofnorthwestchina AT hualiu effectsofweedingfrequencyontheyieldandqualityofiglycyrrhizauralensisifischinanaridandsemiaridareaofnorthwestchina AT yangmeibao effectsofweedingfrequencyontheyieldandqualityofiglycyrrhizauralensisifischinanaridandsemiaridareaofnorthwestchina AT yingniu effectsofweedingfrequencyontheyieldandqualityofiglycyrrhizauralensisifischinanaridandsemiaridareaofnorthwestchina AT mingli effectsofweedingfrequencyontheyieldandqualityofiglycyrrhizauralensisifischinanaridandsemiaridareaofnorthwestchina |