SWI swissinfo.ch: Swiss crop farmers want urgent action against weed

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Yellow nutsedge
Swiss crop farmers want urgent action against weed

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This content was published on May 5, 2018 3:37 PM May 5, 2018 - 15:37
Famers harvesting spinach from a field

Neophytes, such as the yellow nutsedge, are a concern for many crop farmers in Switzerland.
(Keystone)

The government is facing calls to increase efforts aimed at eradicating the yellow nutsedge plant considered harmful for Switzerland’s field crops.

The cantons accuse the federal authorities of making little progress in introducing measures against the grass despite research programmes launched eight years ago.

The Federal Agriculture Office said a special information platform has been launched to help coordinate efforts by the national and cantonal experts as well as farmers organisations.

It asked cantons to provide detailed maps to identify areas particularly affected by the nutsedge pant to plan concrete technical steps.

However, the federal authorities have ruled out urgent measures but they insisted on improved coordination, according to report by the BauernZeitung weekly.

With its dense and layered root system, yellow nutsedge can reduce the vigour of neighbouring plants, according to experts.

It is cultivated in Spain for its earth almonds but considered a weed in most other countries.

swissinfo.ch with SDA/ug

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    Federal Agriculture Office

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