Weeds are often correlated with yield loss because they compete for resources. David Horvath, senior researcher, USDA Agricultural Research Service, said that may be a false premise. “Instead, what happens is the crop that precedes the weeds changes its development in response to those weeds, causing them to grow smaller and not necessarily take up the available resources. That means we can find mutants that are blind to the weeds.” This research has found situations where the corn crop grew better with the weeds around it. “The mutant we found, it wasn’t a significant difference, but the corn was a little bigger when it was growing with weeds. We’re talking about a mix of amaranth and volunteer canola where it was so thick you couldn’t walk through it. That corn plant actually grew better in all three of our plots than in three non-weedy plots.” Horvath was featured in an RRFN segment from Big Iron courtesy of the North Dakota Corn Council.
