Residual soil water, wheat growth and yield as affected by maize varieties, mulching and tillage in rainfed maize-wheat sequence in Himachal Pradesh

Maize (Zea mays L.) wheat (Triticum aestivum L. em Theil) sequence on fine silt, mixed Hyperthermic, Typic Udifluventic soil showed that maize stalk mulch applied at maize harvest with tillage conserved more soil water than did the maize stalk mulch without tillge, the sal leaves (Shorea robusta) mulch @ 7.5 t ha−1 in standing maize and no mulch. The mulchinduced residual soil water increased the emergence, plant dry matter, grain and straw yields of rainfed wheat. Maize stalk mulch without tillage conserved same soil water as the sal leaves mulch is standing maize crop, but gave higher emergence, plant dry matter, grain and straw yields of wheat than sal leaves mulch - a costly and time consuming practice. Hybrid maize yielded significantly better than local maize variety which gave significantly higher yield than composite. The maize varieties had no significant effect on grain and straw yield of wheat under rainfed condition.