Richardia brasiliensis (white-eye (Australia))

Cultural Control

Both R. brasiliensis and R. scabra are readily controlled by any form of cultivation which either removes the taproots from the soil or separates the shoots from the roots; however such cultivation usually initiates another flush of germination of dormant seeds in the soil (Fleck et al., 1989; Rafey and Prasad, 1995).

Both R. brasiliensis and R. scabra are low-growing mostly annual weeds, and are usually of only minor to medium importance. They compete for light, moisture and nutrients (Wells et al., 1986), and although they may be serious in vegetables and other slow and low growing crops, they are usually shaded out below taller growing crops such as maize and cassava. R. brasiliensis can reduce tiller numbers and sugar content of sugarcane if not controlled in the early months after planting (Blanco et al., 1984).R. brasiliensis is a nuisance in lawns and gardens, and has also invaded and replaced native vegetation, as well as being a crop seed contaminant in South Africa (Wells et al., 1986). In Zimbabwe, it has been shown to severely affect establishment and forage production by legumes (Grant, 1977), and in Brazil its uncontrolled presence during the early stages of growth can adversely affect sunflower yields (Fleck et al., 1989). The species is also an alternative host for Fusarium roseum f.sp. cerealis [Fusarium culmorum] (Reis, 1982), for Thanatephorus cucumeris (Dubey, 1994) in Brazil and is an alternate host for the root knot nematode, Meloidogyne javanica (Everaarts, 1981).