Major weeds and farmers' weed management practices in rainfed ricefields of Negros Island, Philippines

This study was conducted in Negros Island, Philippines to: (a) determine the different weed species present in rainfed lowland rice areas of this island; (b) determine the most dominant weed species present in thereat, and (c) determine the existing weed management practices commonly used by farmers in rainfed lowland ricefields of Negros. Fourteen weed species were recorded, namely: Fimbristylis miliacea (L.) Vahl.,Ischaemum rugosum Salisb., Cyperus difformis L., C. iria L., Ludwigia octovalvis (Jacq.) Raven., Hydrolea zeylanica (L.) Vahl., Echinochloa glabrescens Munro ex Hook. f., Cynodon dactylon L., Monochoria vaginalis (Burm. f) C. Presl., Leptochloa chinensis (L.) Nees, Paspalum distichum L., P. conjugatum L., Echpta prostrata (L.) L., and Sphenoclea zeylanica Gaertn. Among these weed species, F. miliacea was the most abundant. Handweeding and good water management were the most commonly employed weed control practices among farmers that followed transplanting method, while combination of herbicides and few follow-ups of handweeding for those farmers that followed direct-seeding method.