Report: The European Weed Research Council Symposium on Herbicides and the Soil.

This article reports on a Symposium on Herbicides and the Soil. The symposium which was organized by the European Weed Research Council in association with Le Comité Français de Lutte Contre les Mauvaises Herbes was held in Versailles, France from December 10 to 11, 1973. The program comprised the following sessions: Physical properties of the soil. Adsorption and leaching techniques. Herbicides and plant diseases. Biodegradation of herbicides and other factors affecting persistence. Use of simulation models in herbicide research. Group discussions on: herbicides, chemical weed control and soil properties; adsorption and leaching techniques; biodegration of herbicides and plant diseases; use of computation models. The session on physical soil properties comprises of four papers dealing with the relationships between one or more soil properties, the sorption of herbicides and factors affecting adsorptive capacity on soil-colloids. Emphasis is given to interaction between soil components and the way in which aggregated soil-constituents largely determine the accessibility of the herbicide. The papers presented at the symposium provide a considerable body of fundamental knowledge contributing to a better understanding of the complex problem of herbicide-soil behavior.