Influence of tillage and herbicide strategies on weed dynamics and wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) performance in saline soils of Northern India

A field experiment was conducted during the rabi season of 2019-20 at the Agronomy Research Farm, Acharya Narendra Deva University of Agriculture and Technology, Kumarganj, Ayodhya, to assess the effects of tillage and herbicide combinations on weed dynamics, crop growth and wheat yield under saline soil conditions. The study involved 15 treatment combinations arranged in a splitplot design (SPD) with three replications. The main plots included three tillage operations: T0-zero tillage (ZT), T1-minimum tillage (MT) and T2-conventional tillage (CT). The sub-plots consisted of five weed management treatments: pendimethalin 1.5 kg active ingredient/ha (pre-emergence), pendimethalin 1.0 kg active ingredient/ha (pre-emergence) followed by sulfosulfuron (SFS) at 0.025 kg active ingredient/ha (post-emergence), SFS + metsulfuron-methyl (MSM) at 0.032 kg active ingredient/ha (post-emergence), a weedy check and a weed-free control. The results revealed that ZT significantly reduced weed density and dry weight while enhancing weedcontrol efficiency (WCE) compared to MT and CT. Among the herbicide treatments, the sequential application of pendimethalin (1.0 kg active ingredient/ha) followed by SFS (0.025 kg active ingredient/ha) was the most effective in suppressing weed growth and improving WCE and enhancing crop growth and yield. This treatment was statistically on par with the SFS + MSM application. The combination of ZT with pendimethalin followed by SFS (T0W2) recorded the lowest weed infestation and the highest values for plant height, dry matter accumulation, tillers per m row length and grain yield. This was closely followed by the ZT combined with SFS +MSM treatment (T0W3), highlighting the synergistic benefits of conservation tillage and sequential herbicide application.