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RESEARCH PRODUCT

Trait distribution within winter wheat fields can partly be explained by disturbances and competition for resources

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description

International audience; Weed species are not homogeneously distributed into field elements (Cordeau et al. 2012)*.In a field, weed species are mainly competing with the crop and constrained by management practice (i.e.disturbances). In the crop edge, less unfavorable conditions for weed development (i.e.absence of direct crop competition,l ess frequent disturbances could explain the greater diversity of weeds.To understand this observation, a functional approach base dont raits known to respond both to disturbances and to competitive or facilitative interactions can be used.Our assumptions are that(i)the crop edge is likely to all owawi derrange of ecological strategies thus promoting species coexistence while (ii) in the field, disturbances should lead to are duction in the range of ecological strategies.