Influence of different tillage practices and herbicide application on physical properties of soil and yield of maize crop

A field experiment was executed to investigate the influence of different tillage practices and herbicide application on the physical properties of soil and yield of maize crop at the research farm of the University of Agriculture, Peshawar, Pakistan during 2018 and 2019. In this experiment four tillage practices ( viz., mould board plough followed by rotavator, disc harrow twice, rotavator twice and cultivator twice followed by planking) and three times of herbicides application (viz., pre-emergence, post emergence and control) were arranged in a RCB design with split plot arrangements. Tillage practices were kept in main plots and herbicide application in sub-plots. Statistical analysis of the data revealed that tillage practices had shown significant effect on soil bulk density (g cm(-3)), moisture contents (%), penetration resistance (N cm(-2)), biological yield (kg ha(-1)) and grain yield (kg ha(-1)) of maize crop. The use of mould board plough and rotavator were better for improving the physical properties of soil at 0-20 cm depth. The bulk density and penetration resistance of the soil were lowest and moisture retention was highest with the application of mould board plough, and vice versa with the use of cultivator twice followed by planking. The same trend was obtained for biological and grain yield of maize in response to corresponding tillage practices. Moreover, herbicide application at the pre-emergence stage significantly increased the biological and grain yield of maize crop but exerted no significant effect on the physical properties of soil measured at any stage. In light of these results, deep tillage practices (such as mould board plough and rotavator) could be recommended for improving the physical properties of soil and yield of maize crop.