Advances on Chemical Control and Herbicides for Spartina alterniflora

The control of Spartina alterniflora has become a significant issue for coastal and island nations worldwide. The choice of chemical control and herbicides has a direct impact on the health of wetland ecosystems, and thus possesses significant scientific research value. To better understand the research progress in chemical control and herbicides for Spartina alterniflora, this study utilized bibliometric methods and VOSviewer software to visualize literature data retrieved from the Web of Science. Preliminary screening using “Spartina alterniflora herbicides” as keywords primarily resulted in three themes: invasive plant management, wetland weeding and preservation, and the working principles of those herbicides. The overlay visualization of co-occurrence analysis showed that research foci had gradually shifted towards the exploration and application of environmentally friendly novel herbicides. Based on this foundation, this study conducted further literature retrieves on chemical control of Spartina alterniflora and its novel herbicides, with the following results: during the period from 2000 to 2024, the number of publications and citation frequency in this research field showed a similar upward trend, characterized by “an initial slow increase followed by a rapid rise”. The disciplines involved in this research field were primarily plant science, agriculture, and environmental science. Correspondingly, the main journals publishing in this area also focused more on weed management technology and invasive plant management. The main contributing countries were concentrated in coastal and island nations, with the United States, Brazil, and China demonstrating the strongest research capacity in this research field. The main hotspots included the mechanism of action and the resistance of herbicides, the analysis and degradation of herbicides, and management and ecological restoration of herbicides. Synthesizing the above analysis, this study provided a prospective outlook on the research of chemical control of Spartina alterniflora and its novel herbicides. Future research may further explore the mechanisms of environmental biological adaptive responses, the scientific management and sustainable development, as well as interdisciplinary research and technological innovation.