Weed management in conservation agriculture: A brief review

Abstract

Weed is a rogue plant which hamper the growth of main crop. The composition of weed flora depends upon the type of agroecosystem. The weed flora in rainfed system differs from irrigated system. Likewise annual crops will have different weed pattern than the perennial cropping system. In low intensity tillage or no tillage associated with conservation agriculture weeds are the major biological constraints towards the large scale adoption of it, and are considered to be one of the most important aspects in crop production under conservation agriculture as it does not allow the traditional means of weed management by ploughing to prepare the field for sowing. Conservation systems are necessary to preserve agricultural productivity and meet future food demand either domestic or global. In this context adequate weed control is vital to make these systems successful. Herbicide use has been a valuable asset when adopting conservation practices. However, prudent use of chemical weed control is essential to fulfill the goals of conservation agriculture by having reducing detrimental environmental impact as well as reducing herbicide resistance development in weeds.