Relation between Soil Weed Seedbank and Weed Management Practises and Diversity in Farms in Kisii Central Sub County, Nyanza

Abstract

This study sought to determine the relation between soil weed seed bank and weed management practices and diversity in farms in Kisii Central Sub County, Western Kenya. Eight administrative sub-locations were randomly selected. Ten farms were selected at equal distance along transect laid across each sub-location. Weed soil seed bank was assessed from soil samples collected from each of the farms; a sub-sample was taken from a composite sample of ten soil cores of 5cm diameter and 15cm deep and placed in germination trays in a greenhouse. Weed diversity in soil weed seedbank was calculated using the Shannon index (H’). Twelve weed species from 12 genera of nine families were recorded. Diversity of the weed species in soil weed seed bank was (H'=1.48). Weed management practises significantly affected weed species soil weed seedbank reserves. Use of inefficient and ineffective hand-weeding techniques resulted in high weed species diversity and abundance.