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Drip irrigation and mulching reduce weed interference and improve water productivity of spring maize

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 November 2024

Ritu Mohanpuria ,
Simerjeet Kaur Open the ORCID record for Simerjeet Kaur [Opens in a new window] ,
K. B. Singh  and
A. S. Brar
Ritu Mohanpuria
Affiliation:
Department of Agronomy, Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, Punjab, India
Simerjeet Kaur*
Affiliation:
Department of Agronomy, Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, Punjab, India
K. B. Singh
Affiliation:
Department of Soils Science, Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, Punjab, India
A. S. Brar
Affiliation:
Department of Agronomy, Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, Punjab, India
*
Corresponding author: Simerjeet Kaur; Email: simer@pau.edu
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Abstract

Drip irrigation and mulching were tested to minimize unproductive water loss through evaporation and weed interference. A field experiment was conducted during spring season of 2020 and 2021 in split plot design with three replications. The study includes six treatment combinations of drip irrigation methods (surface drip and subsurface drip irrigation) and mulching (black plastic, paddy straw and no mulch) along with one conventional furrow irrigation without mulching (as control) in main plots. Four weed control treatments (atrazine 1000 g a.i./ha as pre-emergence, two hand weedings at 30 and 60 days after sowing [DAS], weed free and weedy for whole crop growth period) were kept in the subplots. The combination of drip irrigation and mulches significantly enhanced leaf area index and crop biomass at 60 DAS than furrow irrigation. Integration of subsurface drip irrigation with plastic mulching resulted in the lowest weed density and biomass among main plots. Drip irrigation coupled with plastic and straw mulching resulted in 86 and 50% reduction in weed density and biomass, respectively, as compared to no mulching. Integration of subsurface drip with paddy straw mulch and black plastic mulch resulted in 17.1 and 15.5% higher maize grain yield, respectively, as compared to furrow irrigation. The highest irrigation water productivity (3.58 kg/m3) was observed in combination of subsurface drip and paddy straw mulch followed by combination of subsurface drip and black plastic mulch (3.51 kg/m3). Overall, straw mulching in drip irrigation system proved economical in terms of maize productivity.

Keywords

furrow irrigationgrain yieldpaddy straw mulchplastic mulchweed density

Information

Type
Crops and Soils Research Paper
Information
The Journal of Agricultural Science , Volume 162 , Issue 3 , June 2024 , pp. 215 - 224
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Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Cambridge University Press

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