Dataset of article: Using Cover Crops as Means for Controlling Weeds and Reducing the Applied Quantity of Glyphosate-Based Herbicide in No-Till Glyphosate Tolerant Soybean and Corn

Weeds represents a serious drawback affecting field crops productivity worldwide. While the most common approach to control weeds in no-till practices is the use of glyphosate-based herbicides (GBH), reducing their use represents a major challenge. This two-year field study aims at evaluating whether the use of cover crops (CC) in transgenic soybean and corn productions can 1) help control weeds and 2) reduce the amount of GBH needed for managing weeds. Sampling was carried out in 32 experimental field plots (4 crop managements with 4 replicates on both crops). Crop managements consisted in GBH applications at 0.84, 1.67 and 3.3 L ha^-1 rates in plots with CC and at 3.3 L ha^-1 rates in plots without CC. Weeds cover rates, plant parameters (fresh and dry weights and heights), grain yields, water and cation contents in soil were considered as indicators of interspecific competition. Results obtained in both years show that it is possible to reduce GBH use by 50% in plots with CC compared to plots without CC using 3.33 L ha^-1 rate of GBH application. However, weeds had a large impact on water content in soil which was reflected by smaller plants and lower yields in plots with only 0.84 L ha^-1 of GBH applied. In the context of the study, the use of CCs seems to facilitate the development of more sustainable agriculture, while reducing the quantities of GBH generally used.

杂草是全球范围内制约大田作物生产力的严重问题。尽管免耕栽培中最常用的杂草防控手段为草甘膦类除草剂（glyphosate-based herbicides，GBH），但减少其使用量仍是一项重大挑战。本项为期两年的田间试验旨在评估：在转基因大豆与玉米种植中应用覆盖作物（cover crops，CC）能否实现两大目标：1）辅助杂草防控；2）降低杂草管理所需的GBH用量。

试验共布设32个试验田块：两种供试作物均设置4种栽培管理模式，每种模式下设4次生物学重复。各栽培管理模式的除草剂施用方案如下：设置覆盖作物的田块分别施用0.84、1.67及3.3 L·ha⁻¹的GBH，未设置覆盖作物的田块仅施用3.3 L·ha⁻¹的GBH。

本试验选取杂草盖度、植株性状（鲜重、干重及株高）、籽粒产量以及土壤水分与阳离子含量作为种间竞争的评价指标。两年试验结果均表明：当施用3.33 L·ha⁻¹的GBH时，设置覆盖作物的田块的除草剂用量可比未设置覆盖作物的田块减少50%。但当仅施用0.84 L·ha⁻¹的GBH时，杂草会对土壤水分含量产生显著负面影响，具体表现为植株长势偏弱、籽粒产量降低。

综合本研究背景来看，覆盖作物的应用有助于推动可持续农业发展，同时可降低常规生产中GBH的使用量。