Wild Radish (Raphanus raphanistrum L.)

About Wild Radish:

Wild Radish is a broadleaf weed that can be a winter, summer annual or biennial weed. One of the main concerns with Wild Radish is when it is in the same range as radishes they hybridize. The offspring of these hybridizations is what causes the problem with identification, because of the mixture of different characteristics. Both Wild Radishes and radishes are prone to many diseases and pests that can damage other crops. Some pest they might attract include blackleg of brassicas, flea beetle, thrips, turnip yellow mosaic tymovirus (TYMV).

Family: Mustard Family (Cruciferae)

Wild Radish Scouting and Prevention:

Description

The stem of Wild Radish can be smooth, or with some short bristly hairs standing at about 8 to 32 inches. The leaves on the lower half of the plant are oblong to obovate that are 2 to 8 inches long, filled with about 5 to 15 lobe segments. The lobes on the leaves are smaller near the stem, and noticeably larger as it reaches the tip of the leaf. The upper leaves of the Wild Radish plants are significantly reduced in size. Wild Radishes have flowers with white or yellow petals and violet veins, and are about 10 to 20mm long, flowering from June to October. The seedpods on wild radish are quite predominate, when fresh they are nearly cylindrical and have several indentations, almost looking like beads on a string when they dry out. These green seedpods are about 2 to 4 cm long and 3 to 6 mm thick.

Common locations

• - Cereal fields
• - Potato fields
• - Pastures

Prevention

Prevention of Wild Radish is less expensive and less time-consuming than trying to control it. Make sure when you are seeding a new area you are doing so with certified weed-free seeds. If there is an infested area on your property, be sure to drive around, instead of through it. Finally, make sure to give all equipment that has been in infested fields a good clean, to make sure no seeds are transferred.

Wild Radish Control:

Cultural Control

Mowing is an option to control Wild Radish to reduce the seed production. Due to the fact that they come up at the same time as cereal crops, mowing can only be done in infested pastures.

Here are a few steps that may be able to help you control this particular weed.

• - Do the recommendations given to you by the soil test
• - Make sure you have high-yielding varieties of plants that are adaptable
• - The field should be planted with high-yield varieties in narrow rows, with high plant population. as soon as ideal soil and weather conditions are met
• - Scout fields on a regular basis

Chemical Control

Herbicides are a more adequate method for trying to control Wild Radish in fields that cannot be mowed. Trying to control older and larger plants is much more difficult and time consuming, therefore timely application is critical. Herbicides will be ineffective if applied when the plant is under stress. The herbicides will have more effect right before or right after rain, due to the fact that the roots of the plants are taking in water at the time, which in turn means they will be taking in the herbicides as well. MCPA (4.0 lb active/gal) applied at 1.0 to 1.25 pt/A or 2,4-D (3.8 lb active/gal) applied at 1.0 to 1.25 pt/A provides extremely effective control for Wild Radish that is 8 inches tall or less.

Latin / Alternative Wild Radish names:

• - Raphanus raphanistrum L
• - Jointed charlock
• - Jointed radish
• - Jointed wild radish
• - Radis sauvage
• - Ravenelle

Additional Wild Radish Resources