Integrated Weed Management for Enhancing Growth, Yield and Quality of Sesame (Sesamum indicum L.) in the Gird Region of Madhya Pradesh, India

Abstract

Weed infestation is one of the major constraints limiting sesame (Sesamum indicum L.) productivity, especially during the early stages of crop growth. A field experiment was conducted during the kharif season of 2025 at the Crop Research Centre (CRC-1), ITM University, Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh, to study the effect of integrated weed management practices on the growth, physiological indices, yield and quality of sesame in the Gird region. The experiment was conducted in a randomised block design with ten treatments and three replications. The treatments comprised T1 - mulching (rice straw), T2 - mulching + one hand weeding at 40 DAS, T3 - pendimethalin @ 750 g ha-1 PE, T4 - pendimethalin @ 750 g ha-1 PE + one hand weeding at 40 DAS, T5 - quizalofop-p-ethyl @ 50 g ha-1 PoE, T6 - pendimethalin @ 750 g ha-1 PE fb quizalofop-p-ethyl @ 50 g ha-1 PoE, T7 - fenoxaprop-p-ethyl @ 100 g ha-1 PoE, T8 - pendimethalin @ 750 g ha-1 PE fb fenoxaprop-p-ethyl @ 100 g ha-1 PoE, T9 - weed-free and T10 - weedy check. The results revealed that T9 recorded the highest plant height (113.72 cm), lateral branches plant-1 (7.88), dry matter accumulation (350.53 g m-2), seed yield (900 kg ha-1) and stover yield (2928 kg ha-1). Among the practical weed management treatments, T4 performed better and recorded a plant height of 108.11 cm, 7.58 lateral branches plant-1, dry matter accumulation of 336.06 g m-2, seed yield of 850 kg ha-1 and weed control efficiency of 82.85%, resulting in an 84.78% increase in seed yield over T10. Pendimethalin @ 750 g ha-1 PE + one hand weeding at 40 DAS is an effective and sustainable integrated weed management strategy for enhancing sesame productivity in the Gird region of Madhya Pradesh.