EFFECT OF INDIGENOUS AND ARTIFICIAL MULCHES ON THE MORPHOPHYSIOLOGICAL AND YIELD ATTRIBUTES OF WHITE MAIZE (Zea mays L.)

Abstract

The experiment was conducted in the experimental field of Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University, Sher-e-Bangla Nagar, Dhaka during the period from November 2015 to April 2016 to find out the effect of indigenous and artificial mulches on the morphophysiological and yield attributes of white maize. The experiment consisted of two white maize varieties (i) V1: Shuvra, (ii) V2: KS-510 (hybrid variety) and six different mulch materials treatments (i) T1: Control, (ii) T2: Water hyacinth mulch, (iii) T3: Rice straw mulch, (iv) T4: Black polythene mulch, (v) T5: White polythene mulch and (vi) T6: Transparent polythene mulch. The experiment was laid out in a Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with three replications. Different microclimatic, morphological, physiological and yield contributing characters were studied. In case of white maize varieties, the highest soil moisture (36.5%) was observed from V2 while the lowest (33.2%) was observed from V1 at 75 DAS (20-30cm). The highest grain yield (16.36 t ha-1) was observed from V2, whereas the lowest (13.55 t ha-1) was observed from V1. In case of mulch materials, the highest moisture (32.15%, 38.50% and 43.58 %) was observed from T3, while the lowest moisture (10.25%, 13.68% and 18.08%) was observed from T1 at 75 DAS (0-10, 10-20, 20-30cm) respectively. The highest grain yield (20.5 t ha-1) was observed from T3, while the lowest (6.36 t ha-1) was observed from T1. The lowest weed dry weight (7.458 g/m2) was observed in case of T3, while the highest weed dry weight (35.45 g/m2) was observed in case of T1. Due to interaction effect, the highest soil moisture (44.43%) was observed from V2T3 while the lowest (17.37%) was observed from V1T1 at 75 DAS (20-30cm). The highest grain yield (21.40 t ha-1) was found from the V2T3, while the lowest (6.02 t ha-1) was recorded from V1T1 treatment combinations. The highest weed dry weight (36.63 g/m2) was found from V1T1, while the lowest (7.017 g/m2) was recorded from V2T3 treatment combinations. It was found that the hybrid variety KS-510 provided the highest yield when straw mulch was used and the moisture content was also the highest where weed population was the least in comparison to other treatments and variety.