Effects of weeding methods on weed community and its diversity in a citrus orchard in southwest Zhejiang

By using the research methods of ecological community,the effects of different weed management strategies including chemical weeding,manual weeding,and their combination on the weed community and its diversity in a citrus chard of main orange producing region in Quzhou City,Zhejiang Province were studied from June 2005 to May 2008.In control plots,there were 75 species and 25 families of weeds;after chemical weeding,manual weeding,and their combination,there were 46 species and 17 families,59 species and 20 families,and 51 species and 18 families of weeds,respectively.The Margalef's species richness index,Shannon's diversity index,and Shannon's evenness index were the lowest after chemical weeding,but the highest after manual weeding,suggesting that chemical weeding had the greatest effects on the weed diversity in the citrus orchard.It was suggested that to sufficiently control the weeds while to maintain the weed diversity in the orchard weeds in southwest Zhejiang,the combination of chemical and manual weeding would be the best management strategy.