Sylwester Tabor

Japanese knotweed (Reynoutria japonica Houtt.) is Poland’s invasive weed, for which there is no efficient control method. The rhizomes of this species are rich in resveratrol. In this work, we evaluated (1) the effectiveness of electromagnetic microwaves (MV) in destroying Japanese knotweed using an original device, HOGWEED (MV of 2450 MHz), (2) the ecotoxic effect of the MV on the soil environment, and (3) the resveratrol content in knotweed rhizomes after MV treatment. The field studies were carried out in 2022 in southern Poland. Cut plants were MV-treated for times of 5.0–25.0 min. The MV efficiency was checked 10 and 56 days after treatment (DAT). After MV treatment, fresh soil samples were taken to analyze their ecotoxicity. As a result, at 56 DAT, knotweed was controlled if MV was used for at least 20.0 min. The MV did not affect the soil ecotoxicity. The MV-treated soils were classified as non-toxic or low-toxic. To analyze the resveratrol content, healthy knotweed rhizomes were dug out, treated with MV in the laboratory at 2.5–10.0 min, and analyzed for resveratrol content in HPLC-MS/MS. As a result, the resveratrol in the rhizomes significantly decreased in a time-dependent manner following MV exposure.

Invasive Japanese knotweed is one of Poland’s most aggressive and difficult-to-control species. New methods of control are of utmost importance. This study aimed to analyze young knotweed offshoots’ regeneration and physiological condition after treatment of their rhizomes with microwaves of high frequency. The fresh rhizomes were microwaved in the laboratory once for different times (from 5 to 60 s, interval 5 s). Next, in the greenhouse, the growth of offshoots and their biochemical state (spectrophotometry of leaves) were recorded in three measurement series. It was shown that the microwave treatment for 35 s directly destroys knotweed rhizomes of a diameter of 1–3 cm, so it does not produce new offsprings. The treatment times from 5–25 s delay offspring regeneration and growth and development of leaves. The leaves initiate the mechanisms of protection against microwave stress in offshoots grown from the rhizomes exposed to microwaves for 10 s (increase in the anthocyanin index) and the 5 or 20 s treatments (higher values of the photochemical reflectance index). Based on the effective dose (ED50) analysis, the threshold of harmful effects of microwaves on the growth and development of Reynoutria japonica rhizomes was assumed to be 17–19 s.