Soil Tarping Research Advances Understanding

Research results from South Dakota State University have helped advance understanding of the effectiveness of soil tarping as a weed management strategy in vegetable production. This research contrasted the effectiveness of clear and opaque plastic tarps for weed control and determined that tarping for six weeks in South Dakota’s cool spring climate is optimum for reducing weed competition without causing an adverse effect on soil microbes. Student researcher Hannah Voye also developed best practices for installing and weighting down tarps during the course of the project.