biological weed control via nutrient competition potassium.pdfVIP

Ecological Applications, 9(1), 1999, pp. 103–111 1999 by the Ecological Society of America BIOLOGICAL WEED CONTROL VIA NUTRIENT COMPETITION: POTASSIUM LIMITATION OF DANDELIONS ELIZABETH A. TILMAN,1 DAVID TILMAN,1,4 MICHAEL J. CRAWLEY,2 AND A. E. JOHNSTON3 1 Department of Ecology, 1987 Upper Buford Circle, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, Minnesota 55108 USA 2Imperial College at Silwood Park, Ascot, Berkshire SL5 7PY, UK 3Rothamsted Experiment Station, Harpenden, Hertfordshire AL5 2JQ, UK Abstract. Weedy plants are often controlled by the application of herbicides. Here we explore an alternative method of control. We suggest that the abundance of an undesired plant species (here dandelions: Taraxacum officinale) may be controlled by modifying interspecific competition via changes in resource supply rates. This hypothesis is supported by several lines of evidence. First, analyses of effects of different patterns of fertilization on plant-species abundances in the 140-yr-old Park Grass Experiment at Rothamsted, En- gland, show that Taraxacum abundances were highly dependent on potassium fertilization and on liming, but not on addition of other nutrients. Potassium fertilization led to a 17- to 20-fold increase in Taraxacum abundances in the classical Park Grass data, and to a 4- to 7-fold increase in the modern data. Liming led to a 2- to 3-fold increase for classical data and to a 3- to 4-fold increase for modern data. Second, in a greenhouse study in Minnesota, Taraxacum had a higher requirement for potassium and had its biomass more limited by potassiu