The effect of solar heated hot water on some weeds

This study was carried out to evaluate the impact of 98°C hot water application three time of the day(09:00, 12:00, 15:00), two plant growth stages(GD) of weed species of Plantago major L., Amaranthus blitoides (L.) S.Watson., Chenopodium botrys L., Heliotropium europaeum L., Cynodon dactylon (L.) Pers. which are problematic on hard surface areas of Iğdır University Şehit Bülent Yurtseven Campus between 2017-2019. The study was established according to randomized block design with four replications. As a result of the hot water application, the decrease in the amount of dry matter of the aboveground and belowground parts of plants was highest in Plantago major L. and the lowest rate was obtained from Cynodon dactylon (L.) Pers. At the first plant growth stage of weeds were generally more affected by hot water application than the second growth stages. Accordint to the time of application of hot water, the most effective result was obtained in the afternoon (15:00) and the lowest effect was obtained in the morning (09:00). Weed inhibitory effect of hot water treatments was determined by examining species coverage (expressed as number of pixels per pot) by taking digital photographs of each pot determined by using IMAGE J software. In the study, it was observed that there was a significant decrease in Plantago major L., weed species and no other weed species. In addition, the chemical application for control purposes and hot water application gave similar results. Therefore, it has been proved with hot water application against weeds that are problematic in non-agricultural areas and it is a method that can be used as an alternative to chemicals in weed control. Key words: Hot water, Weed, Growth stages, Non-agricultural area, Hard surfaces, Application time