Department of Crop Physiology, University of Agricultural Sciences, GKVK Campus, Bangalore - 560 065, India.
Competitive ability of cowpea with Cyperus rotundus L. for resources was assessed by partial additive series technique and reciprocal yield approach. Unit of expression for competitiveability of cow pea was number of weed plants. Biomass of weed was drastically reduced by addition of one cowpea plant which was equal to addition of 15 weed plants near its vicinity. However, cowpea and other crop species did not produce enough allelochemicals to suppress weed growth. Even leaf litter extract from few tree species also suppressed only cucumber seed germination but not C. rotundus L sprouting. Thus, cowpea competed for same resoutceS alongwith weed but may not produce a1lelochemicals to suppress C. rotundus.
