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Parasitic weeds
working group |
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Background
Parasitic plants are becoming a severe
constraint to Mediterranean and Tropical agriculture on major
crops and the efficacy of available means
to control them is minimal. The most economically damaging
parasitic weeds are members of the genera
Striga
(witchweeds) and
Orobanche
(broomrapes). Various
species of the latter are important in
southern and eastern Europe, the Middle East and North Africa. For
example, O. crenata
causes huge damage to legume
crops (faba bean, lentil, pea and common vetch) in
southern Europe;
O.
cumana threatens sunflower in
southern and eastern Europe; O.
minor is
important in central Europe on
clover; O. ramosa attacks potato,
tobacco, tomato and hemp; and species such as O.
foetida that cause problems in
other parts of the world are also present in Europe.
The main focus of research on parasitic weeds has been on
their management when infecting important
crops. Control strategies have centred
around agronomic practices and the use of herbicides, although
success has been marginal. Novel integrated control programmes are
necessary. In addition, global
environment change together with changing land use patterns means that some
geographical areas and farming
systems that do not currently suffer from parasitic weeds in Europe could
become affected within coming
decades. It is therefore important to pre-empt the spread of parasitic weeds
and to consider, for example, how quarantine regulations might
achieve this.
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WG Objectives
The main objective of the WG is to increase
the understanding of the interaction between parasitic weeds and their hosts
and to implement sustainable means to control the parasites. The lack of
interdisciplinary involvement has been a major factor that has impeded
progress in the sustainable control of parasitic weeds. The establishment of
the new WG aims to address this deficiency, by
including weed scientists who specialize
in botany, ecology, plant anatomy, physiology, biochemistry,
molecular biology, breeding, plant pathology, chemistry and agronomy.
Joint research within the proposed WG will encourage the
transfer of fundamental research into control strategies in the field application
and shall ultimately yield sustainable management measures for the
variety of parasitic weeds that affect agriculture and forestry in Europe.
The WG will integrate fundamental,
biotechnological and marker-technological science and applied research
concepts to develop sustainable means of parasitic weed management,
integrating cultural practices, genetic resistance, and novel methods of
biological- and chemical control.
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Research
topics to be covered
Considering the
involvement of groups with different expertise in the WG, many different
fields of research will be covered:
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Parasitic weeds of three different groups: root parasites (mainly
Orobanche), climbers (Cuscuta), and mistletoes (mainly
Viscum). |
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Physiology of parasitism: seed germination, attachment, parasite
development, interactions between the host and the parasite. |
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Integrated weed management strategies and the economics of controlling
parasitic plants. |
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Identification, augmentation, exploitation and formulation of biocontrol
agents. |
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Novel cultural practices. |
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Molecular and classical taxonomy and race identification. |
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Developmental aspects of host-parasite interaction, including
structural, physiological, genetic and molecular agro-ecology of
parasitic plants that will have significant implications in the
development of control measures. |
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Distribution, incidence and importance of the parasitic weeds in Europe,
including the invasion and progression of parasitic weeds under
predicted global climate change scenarios, as well as evolutionary
changes within the species. |
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Quarantine measures and regulations for control of spread of parasitic
plants. |
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Monitoring the parasitic plant populations for frequency of virulence
factors and for genetic variation. |
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Development and evaluation of methods for screening and assessment of
crop resistance to parasitic plants, and identification of both
resistance genes and resistance mechanisms. |
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Potential interactions with already existing
EWRS Working Groups
Many interactions with the other EWRS WGs are possible, thus the proposed WG
is anticipated to be highly interactive. For example, we will have
collaboration with:
| WG "Crop/Weed Interactions", because parasitic plants have a very
strict contact with and dependence on crop plants; |
| WG "Biological Control", because biological control appears to be
one of the most promising control strategies for parasitic weeds; |
| WG "Germination and Early Growth", because the first stages of
growth of parasitic plants are fundamental for the success of
parasitization and most susceptible for control; |
| WG "Weed Management Systems in Vegetables", because most of the
parasitic plant species represent a serious problem in vegetables; |
| WG "Education and Training", because there is still a lack of
knowledge regarding parasitic plants, their danger and the possibility
of their management.
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| Proposed activities for the years 2006-07
Formal inauguration of the WG will take place at the International
Conference: "Novel and Sustainable Weed Management in Arid and Semi-Arid
Agro-Ecosystems" to be held at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem,
Rehovot, Israel, October 15-20, 2006, and it will have a joint session with
the last meeting of the European COST849 action "Parasitic plant management
in sustainable agriculture".
A specific workshop on parasitic weeds could be organized in 2007 as part
of the EWRS symposium in Norway.
For more information and joining the Working Group please contact the
coordinator: Maurizio Vurro,
Istituto di Scienze delle Produzioni Alimentari – CNR,
via Amendola 122/0,
70125 Bari, Italy.
Telephone: +39 080 5929331
Fax: +39 080 5929374;
E-mail: Maurizio Vurro
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