Weed interference in maize, cowpea and maize/cowpea intercrop in a subhumid tropical environment. II. Early growth and nutrient content of crops and weeds

Abstract

Summary:Early growth and nutrient content of crops and weeds from weed‐free and weedy no‐tillage maize (Zea mays L, cv. TZB), cowpea (Vigna unguiculata (L) Walp. cv. VITA‐5) and maize/cowpea intercrop at populations of 40000, 50000 and 30000 + 40000 plants ha−1 grown on a loamysand Oxic Ustropept in a subhumid tropical location were monitored in the early and late 1979 cropping seasons. In the first 6 weeks of growth in the early season, cropping pattern had no effect on weed growth; weeds did not suppress crop growth significantly until 5–6 weeks after sowing and total crop dry weights were not affected by cropping pattern. Three weeks after sowing, weeds from weedy crop plots had taken up two to four times as much nutrient (N, P, K, Ca + Mg) as was taken up by corresponding weed‐free crops. In the late season, weed dry weight 6 weeks after sowing was depressed in the intercrop compared to monocultures and dry‐matter production of the intercrop was higher than those of monocultures. The resource use index (RUI), defined as the amount of an environmental resource used by a weed‐free crop divided by the combined amount of the same resource used by the corresponding weedy crop and the associated weeds, increased with age of crop and was higher for the intercrop than the monocultures only in the late season.