Abstract
The escalating scarcity of irrigation water, transplantation of rice on light-textured soils and labour cost acted as major drivers for the transition towards direct-seeded rice (DSR) cultivation from the conventionally flooded transplanting system. Despite these advantages, DSR is a challenge in light texture soil due to heavy weed infestation and a slight decline in crop yield. The weeds compete for nutrients and have an adverse effect on the growth and yield of crops. Hence, to assess the removal of macro and micronutrients by weeds and direct-seeded rice, a field experiment was carried out on sandy loam soil for two consecutive Kharif seasons (2018 and 2019). Three treatments from rice, namely: DSR under zero tillage (DSR-ZT), DSR under conventional tillage (DSR-CT) and DSR under reduced tillage (DSR-RT) were taken as main plots with three tillage treatments in wheat, namely: Conventional tillage without rice straw (CTW-R), Zero tillage without rice straw (ZTW-R) and Zero tillage with straw as mulch using Happy Seeder (ZTW+R) as subplots, replicated thrice. Among the rice establishment methods, DSR-RT showed an edge in terms of rice grain and straw yield (6.18 and 8.14 Mg ha−1, respectively) as well as macro- and micronutrient uptake by rice. Under management practices, ZTW+R proved as an efficient strategy in terms of yield and nutrient uptake by crops. The contribution of weeds towards biomass production was maximum under the ZTW-R (9.44%) treatment followed by DSR-ZT (7.72%). The nutrient budgeting showed that macro- and micronutrient removal by weeds was minimum under reduced tillage (24.51 and 50.35%, respectively), whereas it was 21.88 and 44.87% when wheat was grown under conventional tillage without rice straw. In overall, the research study concluded that weeds on an average remove 25.65 % macronutrients (N, P, K) and 51.47% of micronutrients (Zn, Cu, Fe and Mn) in DSR under rice-wheat cropping system.
Highlights
Rice (Oryza sativa L.) serves as the most popular staple food for more than half of the global population
The results of two-year data demonstrated that different rice establishment methods, viz., direct-seeded rice (DSR)-ZT, DSR under conventional tillage (DSR-CT) and DSR under reduced tillage (DSR-RT), and tillage and rice straw (TRS) management practices, viz., Conventional tillage without rice straw (CTW-R), Zero tillage without rice straw (ZTW-R) and ZTW+R significantly affected rice grain yield, but not straw yield (Table 2)
The highest grain yield and straw yield under rice establishment methods were recorded under DSR-RT
Summary
Rice (Oryza sativa L.) serves as the most popular staple food for more than half of the global population. The production of rice acts as the mainstay of the agricultural sector as it accounts for a major share in tropical and subtropical countries including India, being the second-largest producer and consumer in the world [1]. With the growing population burden, sufficient production of rice on limited arable land has become a priority for developing countries. Water scarcity has become a major concern for conventional rice cultivation due to the high consumption of water during irrigation [2]. The development of rice cultivation technology to suppress water use and labour demand while maintaining yield potential is the need of the hour [3]
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