Consortium: Malherbología

Irrigated agricultural systems are scenarios prone to invasion by exotic weeds. A clear example are the maize fields of the Ebro valley, where the presence and expansion of the American weed Amaranthus palmeri has been detected, supposedly from the importation of grain or flour, of corn or soybeans, for feed. This species is very vigorous, highly competitive and with an extraordinary fertility. In other continents, resistant biotypes have been identified for up to five different herbicidal mechanisms of action, including glyphosate. The Plant Health Services of the Councils of Catalonia and Aragon have prepared measures and recommendations for their containment and control. However, there is a lack of detailed information about the nature of the invading biotypes, their biological behavior, competitive capacity, response to control techniques, expansion methods, as well as the possible presence of biotypes with resistance genes. The research groups that belong to this cluster have long experience in studies of biology and weed control, and currently approach the study of this species from different perspectives: metabolomics and transcriptomics (UPNA), biology and response to control methods (UZ jointed to CITA) and characterization of resistant biotypes (UdL). The cluster also counts with the collaboration of CICITEX from Extremadura as an expert group in molecular biology, the support of CUPASA, a leading company in corn field management systems using precision agriculture techniques, as well as both the Plant Protection Services from Catalonia and from Aragon. The research proposed is clustered in a joint working group with a common target for innovation and research transfer with prospects for co-supervision of doctoral theses and participation in National and European calls for research projects.