EFFECTS OF EARLY WEED REMOVAL ON SOME YIELD ATTRIBUTES OF ZEA MAYS L. VAR. TZB (FARZ 34) CULTIVATED IN OWERRI, SOUTH EAST NIGERIA

Investigation was conducted on the effects of early weed removal on some yield attributes of Zea mays L. var. TZB (FARZ 34) cultivated in Owerri, Nigeria with the aim of evaluating the extent of reduction in total output occasioned by delays in weed removal following seed sprouting. Healthy seeds of this variety were obtained from State Agricultural Development Corporation. The seeds were sown onto manually prepared plots in a Completely Randomized Design. Weeds on treated subplots were removed ten day following germination while those growing on the other plots (untreated) were not removed until 30 days after germination. Data on yield attribute parameters such as number of marketable cobs per plant, green earlength of undehusked cob, thousand grain weight etc. were collected. Results showed that difference in number of cobs per plant between crops harvested from treated and untreated subplots was statistically significant p<0.01. Other yield attributes investigated gave similar results with varying degrees of percentage yield differences between crops from treated and untreated subplots. The implication of this is that Zea mays competitive capability with weeds at early vegetative stages was inadequate comparable to that of the weeds. Incorporating early weed removal in the total farming plan will result in substantial yield gain for growers.