Scientific Reports of the National University of Life and Environmental Sciences of Ukraine

Integrated strategies for controlling segetal flora, taking into account multiple herbicide resistance in cereal agrocenoses

Olena Koberniuk*, Olesia Horodyska, Valeriy Tarasyuk

olena.koberniuk@outlook.com

Download article
Abstract

The study’s goal was to ascertain the impact of a combination of herbicidal and agronomic practices on the structure of the segetal flora, the distribution of resistant biotypes and the productivity of the cereal agrocenosis. The study employed field, weighing, morphometric, soil analysis and computational methods, with statistical analysis of the results. It was found that a comparison of the five treatments revealed varying degrees of restructuring of the weed community – ranging from the untreated control to the standard treatment, the active ingredient rotation, the herbicide + agronomic practices treatment as well as the entire solution. The overall population of species dropped from 15 in the control to 11 in the standard treatment, 9 in the active ingredient rotation treatment, 8 in the herbicide + agronomic techniques treatment, and 6 in the integrated system. The number of dominant species fell from 5 to 2, whilst weed density during the tillering stage decreased from 126.4 to 42.6 plants/m². The Shannon index decreased from 2.31 to 1.36, reflecting a change in the diversity of the floristic structure. In the multiple herbicide resistance block, the standard treatment only partially suppressed resistant biotypes; active ingredient rotation enhanced this effect, whilst the herbicide + agronomic practices treatment and the integrated system reduced their contribution to the weed biomass structure. The proportion of biotypes resistant to acetolactate synthase inhibitors decreased from 60.8% to 36.1%, whilst the post-treatment survival rate of resistant plants fell from 100% to 11.9%. The reproductive component was characterised by a reduction in seed productivity from 15.8 to 1.9 thousand seeds/m² and a decrease in the potential number of seedlings emerging from the soil seed bank from 84.6 to 24.1 per m². Against this backdrop, the crop’s yield response improved from the standard treatment to the active ingredient rotation treatment, the herbicide + agronomic practices treatment and the integrated system: biological grain yield increased from 4.08 to 6.14 t/ha, whilst yield potential realisation rose from 58.3% to 87.7%. The practical significance of the research resides in the application of its results by agronomists, farms and grain producers in cereal cultivation techniques and weed control schemes

Keywords

post-treatment survival; weed community; proportion of biotypes; coenotic pressure; biological grain yield

Suggested citation
Koberniuk, O., Horodyska, O., & Tarasyuk, V. (2026). Integrated strategies for controlling segetal flora, taking into account multiple herbicide resistance in cereal agrocenoses. Scientific Reports of the National University of Life and Environmental Sciences of Ukraine, 22(4),156-177. https://doi.org/10.31548/dopovidi/4.2026.156
References
  1. Bloomer, D.J., Harrington, K.C., Ghanizadeh, H., & James, T.K. (2024). Robots and shocks: Emerging non-herbicide weed control options for vegetable and arable cropping. New Zealand Journal of Agricultural Research, 67(1), 81-103. doi: 10.1080/00288233.2023.2252769.
  2. Chaudhary, A., Chhokar, R.S., & Singh, S. (2022). Integrated weed management in wheat and barley: Global perspective. In P. Lal Kashyap, V. Gupta, O. Prakash Gupta, R. Sendhil, K. Gopalareddy, P. Jasrotia & G. Pratap Singh (Eds.), New horizons in wheat and barley research: Crop protection and resource management (pp. 545-615). Singapore: Springer. doi: 10.1007/978-981-16-4134-3_20.
  3. Convention on Biological Diversity. (1992, June). Retrieved from https://www.cbd.int/convention/text.
  4. Das, T.K., Behera, B., Nath, C.P., Ghosh, S., Sen, S., Raj, R., & Paramanik, B. (2024). Herbicides use in crop production: An analysis of cost-benefit, non-target toxicities and environmental risks. Crop Protection, 181, article number 106691. doi: 10.1016/j.cropro.2024.106691.
  5. Dubey, R.P., Chethan, C.R., Choudhary, V.K., & Mishra, J.S. (2023). A review on weed management in millets. Indian Journal of Weed Science, 55(2), 141-148. doi: 10.5958/0974-8164.2023.00025.4.
  6. Espig, M., Dynes, R.A., Henwood, R.J., & James, T.K. (2022). The drivers of herbicide use among arable farmers in Canterbury, New Zealand: Toward an integrated approach. Society & Natural Resources, 35(3), 281-300. doi: 10.1080/08941920.2022.2032516.
  7. Geddes, C.M., Pittman, M.M., Sharpe, S.M., & Leeson, J.Y. (2024). Distribution, frequency, and impact of herbicide-resistant weeds in Saskatchewan. Canadian Journal of Plant Science, 104(5), 495-513. doi: 10.1139/cjps-2024-0017.
  8. Ghatrehsamani, S., Jha, G., Dutta, W., Molaei, F., Nazrul, F., Fortin, M., Bansal, S., Debangshi, U., & Neupane, J. (2023). Artificial intelligence tools and techniques to combat herbicide resistant weeds – a review. Sustainability, 15(3), article number 1843. doi: 10.3390/su15031843.
  9. Grint, K.R., Arneson, N.J., Oliveira, M.C., Smith, D.H., & Werle, R. (2022). Cereal rye cover crop terminated at crop planting reduces early‐season weed density and biomass in Wisconsin corn-soybean production. Agrosystems, Geosciences & Environment, 5(1), article number e20245. doi: 10.1002/agg2.20245.
  10. Hou, X., Yang, Y., Liu, Q., & Zhang, B. (2025). Evolution and future directions in herbicide-resistant crop development and weed management. Rice, 18, article number 114. doi: 10.1186/s12284-025-00869-2.
  11. Hrytsiuk, N., Bakalova, A., Ivaschenko, I., & Kotkova, T. (2023). Technology of protection of winter wheat from harmful biota in the Northern Forest-Steppe of Ukraine. Scientific Horizons, 3(26), 48-57. doi: 10.48077/scihor3.2023.48.
  12. Hulme, P.E. (2022). Global drivers of herbicide‐resistant weed richness in major cereal crops worldwide. Pest Management Science, 78(5), 1824-1832. doi: 10.1002/ps.6800.
  13. Kalyani, M.S., Ameena, M., Srinivas, Y., Shanavas, S., Susha, V.S., & Sethulakshmi, V.S. (2024). Bio-efficacy of new herbicide molecules for weed management in grain legumes. Journal of Advances in Biology and Biotechnology, 27(1), 191-204. doi: 10.9734/JABB/2024/v27i1691.
  14. Kanatas, P.J., & Gazoulis, I. (2022). The integration of increased seeding rates, mechanical weed control and herbicide application for weed management in chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.). Phytoparasitica, 50(1), 255-267. doi: 10.1007/s12600-021-00955-3.
  15. Khan, B.A., Nadeem, M.A., Najeeb Alawadi, H.F., Ayub, M.A., Mahmood, A., Abbas, T., Nijabat, A., Ameen, M., Abdullah, F., Oraby, H., & Elnaggar, N. (2024). An overview of the role of nanoherbicides in tackling challenges of weed management in wheat: A novel approach. Green Processing and Synthesis, 13(1), article number 20240021. doi: 10.1515/gps-2024-0021.
  16. Khasraw, M.N., Kareem, S.H., Mustafa, K.M., Aziz, O.K., Arif, M., Anwar, A., & Hussain, M. (2023). Integrated weed management in wheat by using sowing time, seed rate and herbicides. Advances in Weed Science, 41, article number e020230037. doi: 10.51694/AdvWeedSci/2023;41:00022.
  17. Kumar, V., Singh, M., Kaur, R., & Jhala, A.J. (2023). The scenario of herbicide-resistant weeds: Management challenges and perspectives. Indian Journal of Weed Science, 55(2), 123-132. doi: 10.5958/0974-8164.2023.00023.0.
  18. Kumari, A., Price, A.J., Korres, N., Gamble, A., & Li, S. (2023). Influence of a cereal rye cover crop on the critical period for weed control in soybean. Weed Technology, 37(1), 25-33. doi: 10.1017/wet.2022.100.
  19. Levene, H. (1960). Robust tests for equality of variances. In I. Olkin (Ed.), Contributions to probability and statistics: essays in honor of harold hotelling (pp. 278-292). Redwood City: Stanford University Press.
  20. McDonald, S.T., Sarangi, D., Rees, J.M., & Jhala, A.J. (2023). A follow‐up survey to assess stakeholders’ perspectives on weed management challenges and current practices in Nebraska, USA. Agrosystems, Geosciences & Environment, 6(3), article number e20425. doi: 10.1002/agg2.20425.
  21. Raza, A., Ali, H.H., Zaheer, M.S., Iqbal, J., Seleiman, M.F., Sattar, J., Ali, B., Khan, S., Arjumend, T., & Chauhan, B.S. (2023). Bio-ecology and the management of Chenopodium murale L.: A problematic weed in Asia. Crop Protection, 172, article number 106332. doi: 10.1016/j.cropro.2023.106332.
  22. Renton, M., Willse, A., Aradhya, C., Tyre, A., & Head, G. (2024). Simulated herbicide mixtures delay both specialist monogenic and generalist polygenic resistance evolution in weeds. Pest Management Science, 80(11), 5983-5994. doi: 10.1002/ps.8331.
  23. Rudell, E.C., Zanrosso, B.A., Frandaloso, D., Giacomini, A.J., Spadotto, D.V., Vargas, L., Nunes, A., & Santos, F. (2023). Integrated weed management strategies in a long-term crop rotation system. Advances in Weed Science, 41, article number e020220053. doi: 10.51694/AdvWeedSci/2023;41:00026.
  24. Saile, M., Spaeth, M., & Gerhards, R. (2022). Evaluating sensor-based mechanical weeding combined with pre-and post-emergence herbicides for integrated weed management in cereals. Agronomy, 12(6), article number 1465. doi: 10.3390/agronomy12061465.
  25. Saile, M., Spaeth, M., Schwarz, J., Bahrs, E., Claß‐Mahler, I., & Gerhards, R. (2023). Weed control in a pesticide‐free farming system with mineral fertilisers. Weed Research, 63(3), 196-206. doi: 10.1111/wre.12581.
  26. Schwartau, V.V., Mykhalska, L.M., Makoveychuk, T.I., & Tretiakov, V.O. (2023). Identification of a herbicide-resistant biotype of Echinochloa crus-galli in Ukraine. Biosystems Diversity, 31(3), 297-304. doi: 10.15421/012334.
  27. Shapiro, S.S., & Wilk, M.B. (1965). An analysis of variance test for normality (complete samples). Biometrika, 52(3-4), 591-611. doi: 10.1093/biomet/52.3-4.591.
  28. Soni, J.K., Nibhoria, A., Punia, S.S., Yadav, D.B., Choudhary, V.K., Lalramhlimi, B., & Navik, O. (2023). Herbicide resistant Phalaris minor in India – history of evolution, present status and its management. Phytoparasitica, 51(2), 353-378. doi: 10.1007/s12600-022-01039-6.
  29. Tidemann, B.D., Harker, K.N., Shirtliffe, S., Willenborg, C., Johnson, E., Gulden, R., Lupwayi, N., Turkington, T., & Zuidhof, J. (2023). Using integrated weed management systems to manage herbicide-resistant weeds in the Canadian Prairies. Frontiers in Agronomy, 5, article number 1304741. doi: 10.3389/fagro.2023.1304741.
  30. Vijayarajan, V.B., Fealy, R.M., Cook, S.K., Onkokesung, N., Barth, S., Hennessy, M., & Forristal, P.D. (2022). Grass-weed challenges, herbicide resistance status and weed control practices across crop establishment systems in Ireland’s mild Atlantic climate. Frontiers in Agronomy, 4, 1063773. doi: 10.3389/fagro.2022.1063773.
  31. Xuan, T.D., Khanh, T.D., & Minh, T.T. (2025). Implementation of conventional and smart weed management strategies in sustainable agricultural production. Weed Biology and Management, 25(1), article number e70000. doi: 10.1111/wbm.70000.
  32. Zadorozhnyi, V., Korniichuk, O., Chernelivska, O., & Suslyk, L. (2025). Efficiency of using herbicide combinations in grain corn crops. Feeds and Feed Production, 100, 127-135. doi: 10.31073/kormovyrobnytstvo2025100-10.