Author(s): A. Rajeshkumar, N. S. Venkataraman, S. Ramadass, N. Ashokkumar and S. Thirumeninathan

Abstract: A field experiments was conducted in Agricultural College and Research Institute, Madurai, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University during rabi season of 2013 with an objective to study the weed interference and productivity of maize in different intercropping situation. The experimental soil was clay loam of Madukur Series with neutral pH. The experiments were laid out in split plot design with three replications. The main plots were consisted with cropping system, viz. maize, maize + blackgram, maize + cowpea and weed management practices such as pre emergence (PE) application of pendimethalin at 0.75 kg ha-1, alachlor at 1 kg ha-1 and oxyfluorfen at 0.2 kg ha-1 and in combination with one rotary hoeing on 35 DAS. In addition to this, rotary hoeing twice at 15 and 35 DAS, hand weeding on 15, 35 DAS and unweeded check were assigned to sub plots. The experimental results revealed that total weed population and weed DMP, were higher in sole maize cropping than intercropping situation. Among the IWM treatments pre emergence application of pendimethalin at 0.75 kg ha-1 followed by one rotary hoeing on 35 DAS resulted lesser weed population and higher weed control efficiency (85.88). The weed control cum smothering efficiency under maize + cowpea system resulted significantly higher (74.40) than maize + blackgram system (73.66). The application of pendimethalin at 0.75 kg ha-1 + rotary hoeing on 35 DAS has higher yield components and produced significantly higher grain yield of maize 6051 kg ha-1.

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