Effect of tillage systems on weed infestation of durum wheat

Weed infestation of durum wheat was determined in the systems of conventional tillage (CT), reduced tillage (RT) and herbicide tillage (HT). Cultivations measures performed after the harvest of the previous crop included shallow ploughing (at a depth of 10-12 cm) and pre-winter ploughing (25-30 cm) in the CT system; only field cultivation (10-15 cm) in the RT system; and spraying with glyphosate (Roundup 360 SL) in the HT system. In the springtime, a tillage set consisting of a cultivator, a string roller and a harrow (10-12 cm) was applied on all plots. It was demonstrated that wheat cultivation in the RT and HT systems was increasing the number and weight of weeds, compared to the CT system. The highest number of weeds occurred at the middle level of wheat crop, whereas the highest air-dry weight was produced by the weeds at the upper and middle crop levels. In the HT system, weed community was constituted exclusively by short-term species, whereas in CT and RT systems – by short-term and perennial species.