Evaluation of different weed management methods on the growth characteristics and yeild of the Dragon's head (Lallemantia iberica Fischer & C.A. Meyer)

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 university of Tabriz

2 Faculty member of Ecophysiology Department - Faculty of Agriculture, Tabriz University

3 Graduated from Department of Plant Ecophysiology, Department of Crop Ecology, Faculty of Agriculture, Tabriz University, Tabriz, Iran.

4 PhD Student in Production and Post-Harvest Physiology of Medicinal Plants, Department of Horticultural Science and Engineering, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran.

10.22034/saps.2023.56194.3026

Abstract

Background & Objective: This research has been carried out with the aim of investigating the effect of different management methods such as mulch, cover plants and trifluralin herbicide on the growth characteristics and yeild of the Dragon's head.
Methods & Materials: This experiment was carried out as a split-plot based on a randomized complete block design in three replications. In this study, the test treatments include two levels of herbicides (use and non-use of trifluralin herbicide) and treatments of pure cultivation of infected and weed-free Dragon's head and cultivation along with the use of mulch and cover plants (pure cultivation of Dragon's head Weed-infested, pure cultivation of Dragon's head without weeds, Dragon's head + Straw and stubble mulch of wheat (three tons per hectare), Dragon's head + Lens culinaris, Dragon's head + Vicia ervilia, Dragon's head + Hordeum vulgare, Dragon's head + Vicia villosa.
Results: Weed infestation decreased the percentage of green cover, leaf chlorophyll index, diameter of the main branch and number of fertile sub-branches of the Dragon's head. However, the height of the main and secondary branches increased significantly from the soil surface of the Dragon's head in the weed-infested treatments.
Conclusion: The results of this research showed that by using mulch and cover plants in the management of weeds, the use of chemical poisons can be reduced and their adverse effects on crops and the environment, which are the basic foundations of human health, can be reduced to the extent significantly prevented.

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