High temperature during May to July is a major hurdle for production of sorghum as fodder in Pakistan, ultimately resulting in a deficit with respect to the demand of meat and milk for increasing population. A field study was conducted to investigate the impact of exogenous application of natural plant growth-promoting substances on forage yield and quality of sorghum. Seed priming and foliar application (alone or in combination) with 1% sorghum water extract (SWE), 3% moringa leaf extract (MLE) and water were applied. Two foliar applications, the first at one month after sowing and the second at 45 days after sowing were carried out. Untreated seeds were used as control. The results indicated that priming and foliar spray performed best in combination as compared to priming or foliar application alone. All MLE applications (priming plus foliar application, priming alone, foliar spray alone) enhanced growth parameters and chlorophyll contents, which ultimately improved forage yield and total dry matter production of sorghum plants. An increase in crude protein and total ash and decrease in crude fiber was also recorded in plants treated with MLE. The results of this study revealed that exogenous application of MLE at 3% concentration (priming plus foliar application, priming alone, foliar spray alone) significantly enhanced the yield through improvement in sorghum growth.

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-In direct seeded rice (DSR), flushes of weeds are encountered, and mostly subsequent herbicides need to apply to control weeds that appear later. A farmer friendly approach was hypothesized in present study to integrate the management strategies for water, soil and cost effective weed free rice production. Efficacy of various herbicides in weed control to improve the performance of aerobic rice grown under varying tillage and alternate water regimes was evaluated. Five weed management techniques (weedy check, weed-free, pendimethalin followed by manual weeding, pendimethalin + bispyribac sodium (BS) + bensulfuron (B) and pendimethalin + MCPA) were carried out within the alternate wetting and drying (AWD) regimes (15 and 20 cm depth) under two tillage systems (zero and conventional). All the herbicide treatments reduced the weed intensity as compared to weedy check, however minimum weed density and dry biomass was observed in pendimethalin at 40 and 60 days after sowing, respectively. Under conventional tillage, weed free plots showed maximum leaf area index, leaf area duration and crop growth rate. Maximum plant height, 1000-kernel weight and kernel per panicle along with less percentage of abortive, chalky and opaque kernels were recorded in pendimethalin followed by BS+B as compared to weedy check plots. Among the herbicides application, pendimethalin followed by BS+B gave highest benefit to cost ratio and net benefits under both AWD regimes. Overall, application of pendimethalin followed by BS+B is an efficient and economic approach to reduce weed infestation which results in improved yield of aerobic rice.Keywords: aerobic rice, herbicides, irrigation management, benefit-cost ratio. RESUMO -Em arroz semeado direto (DSR), são encontradas descargas de plantas daninhas, e a maioria dos herbicidas subsequentes precisam se aplicar para controlar as plantas daninhas que aparecem mais tarde. Uma abordagem amigável ao agricultor foi hipotetizada no presente estudo para integrar as estratégias de manejo de água, solo e produção de arroz sem ervas econômicas. Foi avaliada a eficácia de vários herbicidas no controle de plantas daninhas para melhorar o desempenho do arroz aeróbio cultivado em lavoura variável e regimes alternativos de água. Foram realizadas cinco técnicas de manejo de plantas daninhas (controle de plantas daninhas, sem plantas daninhas, pendimetalina, seguidas de remoção manual, pendimethalin + bispyribac sodium (BS) + bensulfuron (B) e pendimethalin + MCPA) nos regimes alternativos de molhagem e secagem (AWD) (15 E 20 cm de profundidade) sob dois sistemas de preparo do solo (zero e convencional). Todos os tratamentos de herbicidas reduziram a intensidade da planta daninha em comparação com a verificação de plantas daninhas, porém a Copyright:This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided that the original author and source are credited. Palavras-chave...

In order to alleviate the drought adversities on maize (Zea mays L.)biomass accumulation and radiation use efficiency (RUE), a field study was conducted under drought stress levels of D1 = well-watered, D2 = drought stress at blister stage, D3 = drought stress at blister and dough stages; and integrated nutrition levels, N0 = control, N1 = NPK, 125-60-62 kg ha-1 , N2 = NPK, 125-60-62 kg ha-1 + FYM at 10 t ha-1 , N3 = NPK, 125-60-62 kg ha-1 + FYM at 15 t ha-1 , N4 = NPK, 250-120-125 kg ha-1 , N5 = NPK, 250-120-125 kg ha-1 + FYM at 10 t ha-1 , N6 = NPK, 250-120-125 kg ha-1 + FYM at 15 t ha-1. Drought stress caused a significant decline in growth traits, interception of photosynthetically active radiation (PAR), RUE and finally biomass production. The highest leaf area index, leaf area duration, crop growth rate, net assimilation rate, interception of PAR and dry matter accumulation was recorded in plants applied with NPK (250-120-125 kg ha-1) in combination with FYM (15 t ha-1), whereas only NPK application did not significantly improve light interception and dry biomass production. Fraction of intercepted (Fi) radiation was significantly improved by integrated nutrient management under well-watered as well as drought stress conditions. A substantial decrease in total dry matter and grain yield basis RUE was recorded from higher to lower plant nutrition rates, as the highest value of RUE was found with treated plants of 250-120-125 kg NPK ha-1 + FYM at 15 t ha-1. Thus, our study demonstrates that supplemental NPK with FYM is an effective strategy to boost the drought tolerance through improved RUE and biomass accumulation in maize.

Crop residue mulch in agricultural systems preserves soil health and improves crop productivity through its moderating influence on soil temperature regime and enhanced moisture retention. Therefore, a field experiment was conducted to determine the changes in soil properties and grain yield of irrigated summer maize in response to wheat straw mulching in the Northern maize region in China. The treatments investigated were: (i) application of wheat straw mulch (5000 kg ha-1) and (ii) no-mulch application (control). Maize growth and yield attributes were determined during various growth stages, and soil hydro-thermal properties were recorded for two depths (0-15 and 15-30 cm). Straw mulch increased the yield by 18% and also increased total dry biomass yield by 20%, compared to no-mulch. Yield increment was attributed to the increased number of ears per area and kernels number per ear. The effect on thousand kernels weight was found non-significant. Vigorous maize growth was observed under straw mulch treatment, having greater leaf area index (LAI), unit leaf rate (ULR), leaf area duration (LAD), and crop growth rate (CGR). Similarly, the dry matter partitioning for maize kernels was greater in mulch treatment. At the late reproductive stages (R3 and R5), SPAD values for ear and below-ear leaves were higher under mulch treatment. Straw mulch decreased the daytime soil temperature by 1.9 and 1.5 °C on average for 0-15 and 15-30 cm soil layers, respectively. Whereas, the soil moisture content increased about 2.5% (0-15 cm) and 3% (15-30 cm) under the mulch treatment. In crux, leftover crop residue application as mulch in irrigated maize could be a sustainable agronomic option to increase the crop productivity.   Highlights - Wheat straw mulch improved maize grain yield by approx. 18% mainly by increased kernel numbers per ear. - Maize growth attributes and SPAD values were improved under mulch treatment compared to no-mulch. - Straw mulching helped in maintaining comparatively higher soil moisture content (~2 %) and reduced the soil temperature (~1.72°C) during the crop growth period.

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