Effect of crop establishment techniques and weed management practices on productivity and nutrient uptake of hybrid rice (Oryza sativa)

A field experiment was conducted at Modipuram, Meerut during the kharif season of 2007-08 and 2008-09 to study the effect of crop establishment techniques and weed management practices on the productivity and nutrient uptake of hybrid rice (Oryza sativa L.). In this investigation four rice establishment techniques viz; puddled transplanting, unpuddled transplanting, puddled drum seeding and direct sowing (line sowing) and six weed management practices viz., weedy, weed free, pendimethalin PE @ 1.0 kg a.i./ha, pendimethalin PE @ 1.0 kg a.i./ha + hand weeding at 30 DAS, pendimethalin PE @ 1.0 kg a.i./ha + almix PoE @ 4 g a.i./ha and pendimethalin PE @ 1.0 kg a.i./ha + fenoxaprop-p-ethyl PoE @ 70 g a.i./ha were tested in split plot design with three replications. The study revealed that puddled transplanted rice, being at par with puddled drum seeding recorded significantly highest numbers of panicles/m2 (311.3 and 315.7), panicle length (28.9 and 30.6 cm), (151.7 and 155.7 cm), yield of rice, grain yield (5.99 and 6.14 t/ha), straw yield, nutrient uptake. Pendimethalin @ 1.0 kg a.i./ha + hand weeding followed by pendimethalin @ 1.0 kg a.i./ha + almix @ 4 g a.i./ha recorded significantly highest grain yield (59.8 and 62.5 q/ha), straw yield (83.4 and 85.6 q/ha), harvest index of rice, nutrient uptake. The study recommended that the cultivation of hybrid rice with drum seeding establishment technique with pendimethalin @ 1.0 kg a.i./ha + almix @ 4 g a.i./ha gave the maximum yield and economic benefit to the farmers of India.