The Suppressive Effects of Selected Plants Species for the Management of P. hysterophorus

Aims: The present study investigated the suppressive effects of Sorghum bicolor, Sorghum arundinaceum, Amaranthus spinous, Tagetes erictus and Cassia tora on the management of Parthenium hysterophorus.

Study Design: A randomized block design was used to assess the suppressive effects of Sorghum bicolor, Tagetes erictus, Amaranthas spinous, Sorghum arundinaceum and C. tora in laboratory and pot experiments. The treatments were replicated four times.

Place and Duration of Study: Experiments were conducted at the Tropical Pesticides Research Institute (TPRI) and Nelson Mandela Institution of Science and Technology (NM-AIST) for three months from March to June, 2018.

Methodology: Plant to plant and seed to seed interactions were used to study the growth parameters behavior of tested plants both in pots and in laboratory settings. The germination of each plants in both laboratory and screen house was recorded soon after germination for 14 days at the interval of two days. Additionally, for pot studies, plant height, root length and biomass yield were assessed after a period of 3 months during the termination of the study.

Results: Results showed that Sorghum bicolor, Tagetes erictus, Amaranthus spinous and Sorghum arundinaceum demonstrated strong suppression on germination inhibition and plant height and root length as well as reduced biomass of P. hysterophorus. However, Cassia tora exhibited weak suppression effects in both laboratory and pot experiments.

Conclusion: Findings from this study suggest that Sorghum bicolor, Tagetes erictus, Amaranthus spinous, Sorghum arundinaceum were effective in affecting P. hysterophorus. Our finding provides bases towards developing an effective alternative to manage P. hysterophorous.