Effect of tillage systems sequence and some weed control treatments on some field crops [electronic resource].

Includes references.

Two field experiments were conducted in clay soil at Sids Agricultural Research Station, to assess the role of tillage and weed control treatments on weed management through 2-year crop rotation in the period from 2003 to 2006. The first experiment was conducted to study the effect of three tillage systems i.e. to use mouldboard followed by rotary plow, chisel plow three passes followed by rotary plow and chisel plow two passes where these treatments were applied repeatedly every season through four summer and winter seasons in the same plot of every treatment three sub plots weed control treatments (pendimethalin, hand-hoeing and weedy check) were distributed to study their effects on weeds and productivity of the different in the rotation. Results showed that increasing tillage by combining mould board or chisel plowing with rotary plowing decreased the total weeds biomass/m2 by 29.2 and 38.5% and increased seed yield of faba bean by 12.7and 10.3% than chisel plowing only in 2003/04 season and the respective values during 2004/05 season were 38.2 and 32.8% for weed biomass reduction and 25.8 and 3.2% for seed yield. Similar trends were obtained with the effect of tillage systems 01 weeds and yield of both maize and soybean. On the other hand, repeating tillage operations seasonally in faba bean decreased total weed biomass/m2 by 34.0, 17.6 and 24.5% in the third season compared to the first season with mouldboard rotary, chisel with rotary and chisel only in the same respective order. Pendimethalin or hand hoeing resulted in a significant decrease in the total weeds of all studied crops accompanied with significant increases in their yields. The second experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of tillage systems on the control of orobanche management in faba bean. Similar trends were obtained emphasizing that increasing tillage operation by combining mouldboard rotary plowing or chisel plowing with rotary plowing succeeded in reducing orobanche biomass/m2 by 23.3 and 18.2% in 2003/04 season and by 41.4 and 33.4% in second season compared to chisel plowing only and causing increases ranged from the 4.0 to 20.2% of faba bean yield. Imazapic or hand weeding show also significant control of orobanche accompanied with significant increases in faba bean yield productivity. The role of tillage on controlling weeds may be attributed to the role of rotary or mould plowing in burying great proportion of weed seeds including orobanche to depths preventing germination of such seeds. The effect of various possible integration between both tillage and weed control methods were discussed emphasizing the importance of this integration on weed management tactics in studied crops. Other effects of studied factors on weeds or yield components were also recorded.

Summary in Arabic.

1