To study the impact of different cultural and chemical weed management practices alone and in combination on maize under rainfed conditions, a field experiment was conducted during 1996 and 1997 at farmer's fields in Hoshiarpur, Punjab, India, as a part of All India Coordinated Operational Research Project for Dryland Agriculture. There were 8 weed control treatments, i.e. weedy control, one hoeing at 15 days after sowing (DAS) alone and in combination with cut grass as mulch, 2 hoeings at 15 and 30 DAS, pre-emergence application of atrazine at 0.63 kg/ha alone and in combination with one hoeing at 35 DAS, post-emergence application of atrazine at 0.63 kg/ha in combination with one hoeing at 35 DAS, pre-emergence application of alachlor at 2.50 kg/ha in combination with one hoeing at 35 DAS. The important weed species in the field were Echinochloa colonum [ E. colona], Cyperus rotundus, Eleusine aegyptiacum [ Dactyloctenium aegyptium], Digera arvensis, Commelina benghalensis and Sorghum halepense. The pre-emergence application of atrazine in combination with one hoeing at 35 DAS resulted in the lowest weed density, total weed dry weight and highest mean grain yield (31.34 q ha -1) and was statistically at par with pre-emergence application of alachlor in combination with one hoeing at 35 DAS (29.86 q ha -1) and post-emergence application of atrazine in combination with one hoeing at 35 DAS (28.86 q ha -1). Application of atrazine (pre or post emergence) in combination with one hoeing at 35 DAS resulted in 7.48% higher mean grain yield over application of atrazine alone, while the same recorded 20.46% yield increase over 2 hoeings at 15 and 30 DAS, indicating the beneficial effect of chemical weed control compared to hoeing in the initial stages of crop growth.
