Benefits and Limitations of Decision Support Systems (DSS) with a Special Emphasis on Weeds

Abstract

Decision support systems (DSS) have the potential to support farmers to make the right decisions in weed management. DSSs can select the appropriate herbicides for a given field and suggest the minimum dose rates for an herbicide application that can result in optimum weed control. Given that the adoption of DSSs may lead to decreased herbicide inputs in crop production, their potential for creating eco-friendly and profitable weed management strategies is obvious and desirable for the re-designing of farming systems on a more sustainable basis. Nevertheless, it is difficult to stimulate farmers to use DSSs as it has been noticed that farmers have different expectations of decision-making tools depending on their farming styles and usual practices. The function of DSSs requires accurate assessments of weeds within a field as input data; however, capturing the data can be problematic. The development of future DSSs should target to enhance weed management tactics which are less reliant on herbicides. DSSs should also provide information regarding weed seedbank dynamics in the soil in order to suggest management options not only within a single period but also in a rotational view. More aspects ought to be taken into account and further research is needed in order to optimize the practical use of DSSs for supporting farmers regarding weed management issues in various crops and under various soil and climatic conditions.