A Review of the Soil Seedbank from a Weed Scientists Perspective

Abstract

Despite efforts to eliminate weeds, they continue to thrive. Weed persistence is reliant upon the soil seedbank. Knowledge of the soil seedbank is continually expanding, but with the rising threat of herbicide-resistant weeds in agriculture, weed scientists have, in the past, focused their management tactics to more short-term solutions that tackle the aboveground problems, rather than long-term solutions. This article summarized the soil seedbank dynamics of weed seeds and derives management options, from a North American weed scientists’ perspective, that (i) favor the depletion of the seedbank, (ii) favor the germination of the seedbank, and (iii) reduce the possibilities of seed produced by the seedlings that germinated to return the soil. These options can potentially deter herbicide resistance and are successful in the short term for reducing field weed infestations, but are likely to take many years to affect recruitment to the weed seedbank, including recruitment of weed species with a high risk for resistance. The natural longevity of the seedbank suggests that alternative or additional weed management tactics are required to reduce the store of weed seeds in the active seedbank.