Controlling cleavers
in grain
Cleaver can be effectively controlled with a tined weeder!
The cleaver weed
Cleaver is an annual weed that grows up to 150 cm and can climb up other plants using its hook-shaped bristles. One cleaver can produce up to 400 seeds per year, which can survive in the soil for up to 8 years. Cleavers germinates late in spring, sometimes from very deep layers of soil, and is found in nutrient-rich loam and clay soils.
The issue of cleaver
Cleaver can cause a lot of damage, especially to cereal crops. This is mainly down to the competition they create for nitrogen in the soil, light and water. Cleaver attaches to crops and pushes them to the ground, making harvesting more difficult and increasing the moisture content of the crop. The damage threshold is as low as 0.1 plants/square metre.
Control measures
Cleaver can be effectively controlled while it is in in the very early germination to 2-leaf stages with a tined weeder from the AEROSTAR product range. If weeding is not possible at this stage (due to plant cultivation or weather conditions) larger cleaver plants can also be “combed out” later. Cleaver branches out as it grows causing it to become entangled in weeders and meaning it can be “combed out”. Cleavers are relatively resistant to chemical control; even severely damaged plants regenerate and form seeds.
Settings: Weeder tines are tipped forward and do not touch the ground. Raise and clear the tined weeder at the edge of fields.
Practical tip: From the beginning of ear emergence, cleavers and vetches should NOT be combed out (or very, very carefully), as the stalks of the cultivated crops bend more easily at this stage.
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