Fertilisation and weed control effects on yield and weeds in durum wheat grown under rain-fed conditions in a Mediterranean climate
2007
GARCÍA-MARTÍN, A. | LÓPEZ-BELLIDO, RJ | COLETO, JM
A field study was undertaken to examine the effect of fertiliser type and weed control system on grain yield, yield components and weed population in durum wheat (Triticum turgidum. var. durum) grown in a 4-year rotation [bare fallow-barley (Hordeum vulgare)-vetch (Vicia sativa)-wheat]. Fertilisation treatments were: no fertilisation, organic fertilisation with 2500 kg ha⁻¹ of compost (sheep manure and cereal straw) and chemical fertilisation with 100-60-60 kg ha⁻¹ of NPK. Weed-control treatments were: no control, herbicide, harrowing with long-flex spring tines and strip sowing with inter-row hoeing. Chemical fertilisation increased grain yield with respect to the other treatments, amongst which no significant differences were noted. Weed-control systems afforded no improvement in yield compared with controls; indeed, yields obtained using inter-row hoeing were lower. The weed population consisted of a large variety of species, of which the most important were Convolvulus arvensis and Polygonum aviculare. Application of weed-control systems reduced weed density. Herbicide was the most effective, reducing weed biomass by 80%, whilst harrowing and hoeing reduced weed biomass by 40% and 52% respectively. Inter-row hoeing does not appear to be a viable alternative to herbicides, when used as the sole weed control method in a non-diverse cropping system in Mediterranean climates. The lack of response to compost suggests a need for further long-term research.
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