Diversified weed management tactics in diversified cropping systems: Foundations for durable crop production and protection

One of the key questions facing Iowa’s agricultural community is how to produce sufficient amounts of food and farm income while improving and protecting environmental quality. Because synthetic fertilizers and pesticides constitute important expenses in Iowa farming systems (Duffy 2011; National Agricultural Statistics Service 2011) and because their use can be linked to environmental damage (U.S. Geological Survey 1999; Dinnes et al. 2002; Gilliom et al. 2006), learning how to reduce reliance on these materials without compromising farm productivity and profitability is a key priority for Iowa and other parts of the U.S. Corn Belt