Abstract
A field experiment was conducted during kharif seasons of 2015 and 2016 at Junagadh (Gujarat) to study the weed management in groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L.) under organic farming. The
pre-sowing (Deep ploughing, stale seedbed and soil solarization) and
post-sowing
(Wheat straw mulch @ 5 t/ha, hand weeding & interculturing at 15, 30
and 45 DAS, Weed-free check and Weedy check) treatments were
evaluated. The results revealed that stale seedbed, followed by soil
solarisation were found effective in controlling weeds and improving
growth
and yield attributes and ultimately pod and haulm yield over deep ploughing. Results further indicated that hand weeding &
interculturing at
15, 30 & 45 DAS and wheat straw mulch @ 5 t/ha significantly
suppressed weed growth and enhanced growth and yield of groundnut. Groundnut is a major crop of Saurashtra region and demand of
organically produce groundnut is increasing day by day due to health
conscious and premium price of organic product tempted to farmers for
organic cultivation. Organic farming is a production system, which
avoids or largely excludes the use of synthetically compound to maximum
extent feasible. organic farming rely upon crop rotation, crop
residues, animal manures, green manures, off farm wastes, mechanical
cultivation, mineral bearing rocks and aspect of biological pest control
to maintain soil productivity, to supply plant nutrients and to control
insects, pathogens and weeds [1].
Weeds are widely reported as a key constraint in organic farming and
organic weed management relies on preventive, mechanical, physical,
cultural and biological methods, but these tools must be used in an
integrated, multi-strand approach. In addition to direct and cultural
techniques, timeliness, vigilance and an understanding of farm ecology
are also important factors in effective weed management [2].Generally, in organic farming weeds are managed by integrating
various methods, among them, adoption of stale seed bed techniques in
which one or two flushes of weeds are destroyed before planting the crop
and deep ploughing methods buried the weed seeds in deeper soil
layer or destroyed through sun heating to some extent. Sarma and Gautam
[3] reported that tillage system and stale seed bed techniques in
maize significantly reduce weed density, weed dry weight and increased
grain yield. Soil solarisation during summer month desiccate weed
seeds present at top soil depth [4]. Study on groundnut showed that soil solarisation suppressed weeds and increase groundnut yield [5] and
Sundari and Kumar [6]. Application of organic mulch also found effective
for controlling weeds but also add organic matter in soil. Therefore,
an experiment is plan to find out most effective and economically viable
combination of preventive, mechanical, physical and cultural methods
of weed control to manage the weeds in kharif organic groundnut.
#Weed Management Strategies for Organic Farming of Kharif Groundnut by RK Mathukia in BJSTR
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