Smart Solutions for Agriculture

The LZH is researching solutions for the agriculture of the future. With the help of laser technology, we want to make agriculture more digital, smarter and more sustainable. We are working on a wide range of projects, from weed management and pest control to food processing. Here we present some selected projects from the fields of weed management and pest control.

More about the research and services of LZH in the field of smart agricultural technologies

Your contact person

Dr. rer. nat. Tammo Ripken

Dr. rer. nat.

Tammo

Ripken

Head of Industrial and Biomedical Optics Department

+49 511 2788-228

t.ripken@lzh.de

Light-based weed control with the laser

Laser vs weeds: Reducing herbicides in plant production

At LZH, we are working on a new approach to weed management in crop production. Instead of applying herbicides, we want to control weeds physically. In this chemical-free weed control, high-dose laser radiation obliterates the plant's growth center.

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Fighting weeds in sugarbeet cultivation intelligently and precisely with the laser

Press releases

08 November 2021

Sugarbeet has a hard time asserting itself against weeds in the field. That's why various partners have joined forces in the project LUM to develop a method for controlling weeds using hoes and lasers for an automated and sustainable weed control.

WeLASER: Technical alternative in weed management

Press releases

25 March 2021

Instead of using chemical products, in the future, the growth center of weeds is to be lethally damaged through laser radiation. The partners in the EU project WeLASER want to create the basis for this vision. The project brings together research institutions, companies, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) from the agricultural sector in eight EU countries, including the Laser Zentrum Hannover e.V. (LZH). Over the next three years, the partners want to test a laser system's effectiveness on selected crops.

Alternative: laser – new strategy in dealing with resistant weeds

Press releases

23 July 2020

Grasses such as slender meadow foxtail and windgrass have become an acute problem on agricultural land. In the event of severe infestation, farmers are threatened with having to take agricultural fields out of production altogether. To develop alternatives in the fight against weeds and herbicide resistance, the Laser Zentrum Hannover e.V. (LZH) is now testing a laser-based approach for its practicality.

Control of insect pests with the laser

The LichtFalle project is about scaring, attracting, mapping and selectively controlling insect pests using a mobile LED laser combi trap.

When plants are grown in greenhouses, insect pests are often rendered harmless by yellow boards. However, beneficial animals also stick to their glue coat and die unintentionally. In the LichtaFlle (light trap) project, scientists at the Laser Zentrum Hannover e.V. (LZH) and project partners are developing a mobile trap that can distinguish between pests and beneficial insects.