b'Cover crops in research plots being terminated with a roller crimper. PHOTO: AAFCLaura Anderson is a graduate student at Dalhou-sie University in Halifax, N.S., who is overseeing the field work in the cover crop study. She contends, in Researchthe face of rising herbicide resistance, a multi-fac-plot containing a mixeted approach to weed control that includes options of hairy vetch, crimsonlike biofumigant cover crops could be very beneficial clover and annual rye after the cover crop for the potato industry. was terminated with aGrowers have become reliant on their herbicide roller crimper.options, but I think as resistance becomes more and PHOTO: AAFC more of an issue in their operations, theyre looking for other strategies, she says.Anderson believes as the herbicide toolbox becomes more limited, the idea of using cover crops to control problem weeds is something growers could really get behind.Especially here [in Atlantic Canada], potato farmers are becoming more familiar with biofu-migation and have been using brown mustard for wireworm control, she says. McKenzie-Gopsill says researchers are also exam-ining a number of other weed management options which could eventually be part of a larger integrated weed management plan for potato producers. These include crop rotations, inter-row cultivation and a novel technique known as flame weeding. The flame weeding research involves using a handheld propane torch to burn out weeds in small potato plots, McKenzie-Gopsill notes.It is viable in that kind of situation, he says. Ive never spoken to anybody whos tried flame weeding on a large-scale potato production, but it is a possibility. 36 SPUDSMART.COM WINTER 2020'