Shifts of maize crop weed flora over 50 years: a case study in central Italy
During the second half of the twentieth century, agricultural practices in Italy underwent a fast transition from
extensive and traditional to intensive and specialized. Weed assemblages colonizing cultivated fields were thus
subjected to major shifts, mainly driven by the increased use of herbicides and chemical fertilizers. Moved by the
early intuition that the fight against weeds could deeply alter the balances of arable agroecosystems, already in the