TILLAGE AND MULCHING EFFECT ON WEED DYNAMICS AND YIELD COMPONENTS OF MAIZE CROP IN DISTRICT PESHAWAR UNDER SEMI ARID ENVIRONMENT

An experiment was conducted on effect of tillage and mulching on emergence, weed population and yield components of maize crop in district Peshawar under Semi arid environment during 2012. The experiment was laid out in factorial experiment with randomized complete block design having nine treatments and four replications. Three tillage practices (Cultivator 4 times followed by planking, mould board plough followed by rotavator and cultivator twice followed by planking) and three mulching levels (wheat mulch, barseem mulch and control) were used. Tillage practices were alloted to main plots and mulching levels to subplots. Tillage practices had a significant effect on harvest index (%), weed population (m^-2) while showing no significant effect on number of cobs plant^-1 and days to emergence. Maximum number of cobs plant^-1(1), harvest index (22.71 %), weed population (39.50m^-2) and days to emergence (5.07). Similarly, mulching have also showed no significant effect on number of cob plant^-1 (1), and days to emergence (5.08) while showed significant effect onharvest index (22.20%) and weed population (33.08m^-2). It was concluded that the combination of wheat straw mulch and mould board plough followed by rotavator were proved fruitful for increasing yield components of maize crop and reducing weed population under semi-arid environment.