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. 2024 May 10;13(10):1315.
doi: 10.3390/plants13101315.

Allelopathic Effects of Corn Straw and Its Water Extracts on Four Weed Species and Foxtail Millet

Shuqi Dong  1 , Jiaxin Dong  1 , Peiyao Li  1 , Bo Cao  1 , Mengyao Liu  1 , Zhenyu Guo  2 , Xie Song  1 , Yongqing Ma  3 , Chunyan Hu  2 , Xiangyang Yuan  1
Affiliations

Allelopathic Effects of Corn Straw and Its Water Extracts on Four Weed Species and Foxtail Millet

Shuqi Dong et al. Plants (Basel). .

Abstract

Straw covering is a protective tillage measure in agricultural production, but there is relatively little research on the allelopathic effects of corn straw on weeds and foxtail millet. This experiment studied the allelopathic effects of corn straw on four weeds (Chenopodium album, Setaria viridis, Echinochloa crus-galli and Amaranthus retroflexus) in foxtail millet fields, and also measured the growth indicators of foxtail millet. The study consisted of Petri dish and field experiments. Five treatments were used in the Petri dish experiment: clear water as control (0 g/L, TCK) and four types of corn straw water extracts. They were, respectively, the stock solution (100 g/L, T1), 10 X dilution (10 g/L, T2), 50 X dilution (2 g/L, T3), and 100 X dilution (1 g/L, T4) of corn straw water extracts. Additionally, seven treatments were set up in the field experiment, consisting of three corn straw covering treatments, with covering amounts of 3000 (Z1), 6000 (Z2) and 12,000 kg/ha (Z3), and four control treatments-one treatment with no corn straw cover (CK) and three treatments involving the use of a black film to create the same shading area as the corn straw covered area, with black film coverage areas of 50% (PZ1), 70% (PZ2), and 100% (PZ3), respectively. The results showed that the corn straw water extract reduced the germination rate of the seeds of the four weeds. The T1 treatment resulted in the allelopathic promotion of C. album growth but the inhibition of S. viridis, E. crus-galli, and A. retroflexus growth. Treatments T2, T3, and T4 all induced the allelopathic promotion of the growth of the four weeds. The order of the effects of the corn straw water extracts on the comprehensive allelopathy index of the four weed seeds was as follows: C. album > S. viridis > A. retroflexus > E. crus-galli. With an increase in the corn straw mulching amount, the density and total coverage of the four weeds showed a gradual downward trend, whereas the plant control effect and fresh weight control effect showed a gradual upward trend. All indices showed the best results under 12,000 kg/ha of mulching and returning to the field. Overall, corn straw coverage significantly impacted the net photosynthetic rate and transpiration rate of foxtail millet and increased the yield of foxtail millet. Under coverages of 6000 and 12,000 kg/ha, the growth of foxtail millet is better. Based on our findings, we recommend a corn straw coverage of 12,000 kg/ha for the allelopathic control of weeds in foxtail millet fields.

Keywords: allelopathy; corn straw; water extract; weeds control.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Effect of corn straw water extract on seeds germination rate of the four weeds (Petri dish experiment). TCK—Clear water control; T1—the stock solution of corn straw water extracts; T2—10× dilution of corn straw water extracts; T3—50× dilution of corn straw water extracts; T4—100× dilution of corn straw water extracts.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Effect of corn straw water extract on the allelopathy index of seeds germination rate (Petri dish experiment).
Figure 3
Figure 3
Effects of corn straw water extract on root length (A) and shoot length (B) (Petri dish experiment). Error bars indicate the standard error of means. Note: Comparison between treatments of different concentrations on the same weed species, with lowercase letters representing a significant difference (p < 0.05).
Figure 4
Figure 4
Effects of corn straw water extract on allelopathic index of root (A) and shoot (B) length (Petri dish experiment).
Figure 5
Figure 5
Effect of straw water extract on the comprehensive allelopathic index of the four weeds seeds (Petri dish experiment).
Figure 6
Figure 6
Total weed coverage value under different corn straw mulching (field experiments). No weed growth under PZ3 treatment.
Figure 7
Figure 7
Effect of corn straw mulching on foxtail millet plant height (field experiments). Note: Comparison between treatments of different mulching on the same days, with lowercase letters representing a significant difference (p < 0.05).
Figure 8
Figure 8
Effect of corn straw mulching on foxtail millet leaf area (field experiments). Note: Comparison between treatments of different mulching on the same days, with lowercase letters representing a significant difference (p < 0.05).
Figure 9
Figure 9
Effect of corn straw mulching on soil plant analysis development SPAD value of foxtail millet (field experiments). Note: Comparison between treatments of different mulching on the same days, with lowercase letters representing a significant difference (p < 0.05).
Figure 10
Figure 10
Effect of corn straw mulching on Pn of foxtail millet leaves (field experiments).
Figure 11
Figure 11
Effect of corn straw mulching on Tr of foxtail millet leaves (field experiments).
Figure 12
Figure 12
Effect of corn straw mulching on Gs of foxtail millet leaves (field experiments).
Figure 13
Figure 13
Effect of corn straw mulching on Ci of foxtail millet leaves (field experiments).
Figure 14
Figure 14
Planting pattern diagram of foxtail millet field.
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