Management Options and Soil Types Differentially Affect Weeds in Maize Fields of Kakamega, Western Kenya

Maize production in Kenya is constrained by weed infestation and nutrient deficiencies. Field studies were conducted during the 2008/2009 cropping seasons to investigate weeds in maize fields on three dominant soil types in Western Kenya. Weeds were inventoried and their composition was compared usi...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:农业科学与技术：A 2012, Vol.2 (1), p.104-114
Main Author: Ajebesone Francis Ngome Kelvin Mtei Mtei Frank Mussgnug Mathias Becker
Format: Article
Language:Chinese
Subjects:
土壤类型
玉米产量
玉米田杂草
管理
肯尼亚
西部
覆盖作物
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Summary:Maize production in Kenya is constrained by weed infestation and nutrient deficiencies. Field studies were conducted during the 2008/2009 cropping seasons to investigate weeds in maize fields on three dominant soil types in Western Kenya. Weeds were inventoried and their composition was compared using Jaccard＇s index. The economic importance of weed species （potential to reduce yields and the difficulty to control them by manual weeding） was assessed through participatory surveys. Finally, field trials assessed the effects of management options （farmer＇s practice, clean weeding, green manure, zero-tillage ＋ cover crop and zero-tillage） on weed biomass and species composition. Across the three soil types, 55 weed species in 21 families were identified. Soil types influenced species composition as confirmed by Jaccard＇s similarity indices of 0.50, 0.58 and 0.62 for Nitisol vs. Acrisol, Ferralsol vs. Acrisol and Nitisol vs. Ferralsol, respectively. The economically important weeds were Commelina benghalensis, Cy
ISSN:2161-6256