Sowing depth, soil texture, Ph and management of straw on germination of Rottboellia exaltata

Abstract

The grass camalote (Rottboellia exaltata Lf) has been reported as an important weed, may cause economic losses and difficulties in management in several crops. It was determined the seedling emergence of R. exaltata, at different depths of sowing (0, 0.5, 1, 5, 10, 12, 15 and 20 cm) in soils with different textures and pH values. It also assessed the effects of different amounts of straw Mucuna aterrima, Canavalia ensiformis and Crotalaria spectabilis, arranged on the surface or incorporated into the soil on the emergence and weed biomass. In sandy soil, the higher emergence of R. exaltata was 5.0 cm deep. In clay soil the pattern of emergence was similar; however, there was a greater reduction in emergency with the increase in sowing depth. The highest germination rate was observed in soil with pH ranging from 6.8 to 7.0, verifying lower germination in soil not corrected, at pH 5.3.The management of straw more effective in suppressing R. exaltata were 10 t ha-1 of C. spectabilis straw positioned on clayey soil and incorporated on the sandy soil, 5 t ha-1 of C. spectabilis incorporated on the sandy soil.