Patent ID: 8872136

Claim:
A substantially non-invasive low-energy low irradiance non-mutating method for eradicating a plant in a time under one minute, using a Rapid Unnatural Dual Component Illumination Protocol (RUDCIP) with illumination about said plant, said method comprising: [1] An above-ground foliage and root crown damage illumination component comprising exposure to near-IR radiation directed to any of a foliage of said plant and a root crown of said plant, said near-IR radiation of irradiance E near-IR in W/m 2 and a total exposure time T near-IR in seconds following a RUDCIP Band (RUDCIP BAND) specification; [2] A ground-penetrating UV-A illumination component, comprising exposure to UV-A radiation directed to any of a root crown of said plant and a soil grade immediately adjacent said root crown; said UV-A radiation of irradiance E UV-A in W/m 2 and a total exposure time T UV-A in seconds following said RUDCIP Band specification; said above-ground foliage and root crown damage illumination component and said ground-penetrating UV-A illumination component each having said exposure times T near-IR and T UV-A of under one minute of total operation, respectively; said RUDCIP Band specification comprising a Red River Crabgrass ( Digitaria cilaris ) protocol specification given by L= 5.5×10 .6 [E near-IR ]*T near-IR +6.5×10 .5 [E UV-A ]*T UV-A where L is lethality effectiveness expressed in fraction of plants dead in 30 days, such that L is greater than zero and equal to or less than unity: said RUDCIP Band specification further specifying that said UV-A irradiance E UV-A is within a factor of three above or below said Red River Crabgrass ( Digitaria cilaris ) protocol specification, such that said UV-A radiation has an over-riding minimum irradiance E UV-A of 60 W/m 2 ; and said RUDCIP band specifying further that said near-IR irradiance E near-IR is between a maximum of 27,000 W/m 2 and a minimum of 270 W/m2.