Use of Domestic Geese for Weed Control in a Blueberry Orchard

概要

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The objective of this study was to obtain the basic information on the effective use of geese for vegetation management in an orchard. An experiment was conducted to prove the influence of free-ranging 10 geese (average 2.6 kg BW, 4 to 5 months of age) on weeding in the blueberry orchard (Vaccinium ashei Reade, 18a) from September to November in 2009 (68 days). In the blueberry orchard, there were a lot of grass weeds and the dominant species was Digitaria adscendens (H. B. K. ) Henr.. The geese more frequently grazed on grasses than on other plant species (P<0.01), however, they did not browse the leaf and bark of the blueberry at all. There was no significance in the percentage of bare ground between the treatments at the end of grazing period. Herbage mass of the free-ranging plot was significantly smaller than that of the control plot (adjacent area to geese free-ranging) (P<0.01) at that time. These results indicated that the free-ranging geese suppressed the weed in a blueberry orchard and they were helpful in weeding.
日本暖地畜産学会の論文