Integrated Weed Management: A Comprehensive Review of Conventional, Non-Conventional, and Emerging Strategies for Sustainable Agriculture

Abstract

This manuscript comprehensively reviews integrated weed management (IWM) strategies, emphasizing the need for sustainable agricultural practices. It explores conventional methods, such as herbicide and mechanical control, and non-conventional techniques, including mulching, cover crops, and thermal methods. The review also delves into emerging technologies like precision agriculture, genomic approaches, and robotic weed control. The discussion is framed around five pillars of IWM: diverse cropping systems, cultivar selection, field and soil management, direct control, and monitoring and evaluation. Environmental and socioeconomic impacts of weed management are considered, highlighting the need for a new paradigm that integrates diverse control tactics to enhance agricultural resilience and sustainability.