Weed diversity in crops in the Characato district, Arequipa department, Peru

Abstract

Weeds are an omnipresent and costly problem for farmers in developing countries. They are considered opportunistic and unwanted plants that grow in crop fields, negatively affecting production yield. In Peru, studies on the species diversity and distribution of weeds found in the Andean region are scarce. In this work we contribute to the knowledge of weeds present in crops in the Characato district. To do so, weeds growing next to cultivated plants were collected, herbarium specimens were analyzed to identify them, and the geographic origin of the species was established through specialized bibliography and digital databases. 67 weed species were identified, grouped into 51 genera and 19 families, of which 60 species corresponded to Eudicotyledons and 7 species to Monocotyledons; The Brassicaceae family has the greatest diversity with 9 species, followed by Asteraceae (8), Poaceae (7), Solanaceae (6), Amaranthaceae (5), Fabaceae (4), Plantaginaceae (4) among other families. Of the total reported species, 30 (44.8%) are native and 37 (55.2%) are introduced. Finally, 5 species were found that are globally recognized for their negative impact on agriculture.