Validation of Different Post-Emergence Herbicides for Controlling Wild Oat (Avena fatua L.) and Other Grass Weeds in Wheat (Triticum spp) at Western Oromia

Abstract

A field experiment on weed control in wheat was conducted at Bako Agriculture Research center during the main season of 2017. Different herbicides were evaluated against the hand weeding and weedy check, for weed competition and grain yield of wheat. The experiment was laid out in randomized complete block design with three replications using the wheat variety “Danda’a” with a seed rate of 150 kg ha-1. The treatments consisted of four post-emergence herbicide; Pallas™ 45 OD, Puma super EW 75, Current 8 EC and Axial, and including Hand weeding and unwedded check for comparison. Significantly lowest weed population  (10.7m²) and maximum grain yield of 3306.4 kg ha-1 (with 48.4% increase in grain yield over weedy check) were recorded  in the plot pallas was treated  in contrary  the  highest weed population and  low grain yield was recorded  in weedy check were 54.1 weeds m^-2 and 1692.1 kg ha^-1 , respectively. Therefore,  pallas 45 OD  provided significant control of weeds causing significant reduction in density of target weed flora and also significantly improved the grain yield in comparison with other herbicides and  weedy check. Hand weeded treatments fetched highest gross income and added income followed by hand weeding   and current treatments. However, maximum CBR was calculated for Pallas followed current. The CBR calculated in the hand weeded treatments was though the lowest. pallas  therefore  recommended  for  effective  weed  control  as  post  emergence  herbicide  respectively  for  wheat economic yield in western Ethiopia .

DOI: 10.7176/JNSR/12-19-01

Publication date:October 31^st 2021