Effect of integrated weed management practices on growth and yield of mulberry

Abstract

A field experiment was conducted during 2025 to evaluate the effect of integrated weed management practices on weed parameters, growth and yield of mulberry. The experiment was laid out in a Randomized Complete Block Design with fourteen treatments and three replications. Among the treatments, T₃ (hand weeding immediately after pruning followed by plastic mulching within a week) recorded the lowest total weed density (10.17, 8.17 and 15.00 no. m⁻²) and weed dry weight (2.70, 3.24 and 7.09 g m⁻²) at 20, 40 and 60 days after pruning, respectively. The same treatment also recorded the highest shoot length (139.59 cm), number of shoots per plant (21.73), number of leaves per shoot (28.77), leaf area (140.80 cm²) at 45 days after pruning, leaf yield per plant (3.40 kg) and leaf yield per hectare (3766 kg ha⁻¹ crop⁻¹) at 60 days after pruning. This was followed by T₉ (hand weeding immediately after pruning and intercropping with fodder cowpea). Among the herbicide-based treatments, T₈ (paraquat dichloride 24% SL @ 1.25 kg a.i. ha⁻¹ followed by plastic mulching) was found to be superior in reducing weed growth and improving mulberry performance. The study indicated that integration of hand weeding with plastic mulching or fodder cowpea intercropping was more effective for weed suppression and yield improvement in mulberry.