Optimizing Nutrient Supply and Weed Management for Enhanced Productivity and Nutrient Use Efficiency in Wheat

Abstract

Wheat productivity is strongly influenced by nutrient availability and weed competition, both of which affect crop growth, nutrient acquisition, and yield formation. Integrating mineral fertilisers with farmyard manure may improve nutrient availability and utilisation, while effective weed management can reduce competition for essential resources. However, the combined effects of contrasting fertility regimes and weed-management practices on wheat productivity and nutrient acquisition require further evaluation. A field experiment was conducted during the rabi season of 2019–20 to evaluate the effects of integrated fertility and weed management on wheat productivity and nutrient acquisition. The experiment used a 4 × 4 factorial randomised block design with three replications, comprising four fertility regimes and four weed-management practices. Among the fertility treatments, 125% RDF-IF with 25% of the nutrient requirement supplied through farmyard manure (FYM) produced the highest grain yield (47.97 q ha⁻¹), straw yield (71.05 q ha⁻¹), and biological yield (119.01 q ha⁻¹). This treatment also recorded the highest grain N, P, and K uptake of 119.98, 23.15, and 120.48 kg ha⁻¹, respectively. Weed management markedly influenced crop performance. Maintaining the crop weed-free up to 60 days resulted in the highest grain yield (51.28 q ha⁻¹), straw yield (75.54 q ha⁻¹), and biological yield (126.81 q ha⁻¹), together with grain N, P, and K uptake of 127.00, 25.38, and 130.22 kg ha⁻¹, respectively. Nutrient concentrations in grain and straw varied comparatively little across fertility treatments, indicating that the greater nutrient uptake was mainly associated with increased biomass production. Overall, the findings show that combining mineral nutrient supply with FYM and effectively suppressing early-season weed competition can improve wheat productivity and nutrient acquisition under the conditions of this experiment.