Vol. 12, Issue 6 (2023)

Author(s):
S Rathika, T Ramesh and R Jagadeesan

Abstract:
Sugarcane is a slow growing crop rightly called as “wonder cane”. Crop-weed competition occurs during early phase of sugarcane growth. If these weeds are not controlled in the critical period, the yield reduction of sugarcane ranges between 20 to 40 percent. Inefficient weed management is an important threat to sugarcane productivity. The critical period of crop-weed competition has been recorded upto 4 months after planting beyond which the crop smothers the weed flora by itself. It has been estimated that weeds can cause 12 to 72 percent reduction in yield depending on the severity of infestation. Weed infestation is one the most dominant constraints in sugarcane production. If these weeds are not controlled from very beginning the reduction in sugarcane yield may be as high as 10-70 percent. The Indian Institute of Sugarcane Research (IISR), Lucknow developed a technology named “Integrated Weed Management“ which checks the weeds with less cost involvement, as weed control is major problem for sugarcane farmers. However, the higher wages of labourers with un-sufficient number of its availability, resulted in poor weed control in cane fields.