Abstract:
Wheat yield is fined to be stagnant in rice-wheat cropping system. Zero tilled wheat
followed by direct seeding of rice with alternate wetting and drying irrigation (AWD) technique
requires less water and labor and seem to be a promising option to increase the productivity and net
returns of rice-wheat cropping system. A field experiment was carried out to compare the zero and
conventional tilled wheat after three different rice establishment methods i.e. flooded, alternate wetting
and drying (AWD) and direct seeded conditions during the years 2008-09 and 2009-10. The wheat
crop was cultivated soon after the harvesting of rice crop sown under three different conditions; i.e.
flooded rice, the direct seeded rice sown with AWD and the aerobic direct seeded rice (DSR). Wheat
(Seher-2006) was sown using zone disk tiller machine in zero tillage (ZT) and using farmers practices
in conventional tillage (CT). The results revealed that the fertile tillers per unit area and grains spike-1
were affected substantially in 2008-09 showing maximum number of fertile tillers 311.25 in ZT wheat
after AWD Rice and 379.73 CT wheat after DSR, but it was non-significant in 2009-10. In case of
grain per spike in 2008-09, maximum number of grains spike-1
(53.93) was recorded in Zero Tilled ZT
wheat after Flooded Rice and non-significant in rice - CT wheat. In year 2009-10, higher number of
grains spike-1
58.47 and 55.00 were recorded in ZT wheat after AWD Rice and CT Wheat after AWD
Rice, respectively. Wheat grain yield 4.07 and 4.11 t ha-1 was harvested in 2008-09 while, 2.72 and
2.62 t ha-1
for zero and conventional tillage technology, respectively. Economic analysis revealed that
during both years ZT wheat after rice gave feasible net returns (NR) as well as benefit cost ratio
(BCR), when followed any rice cultivation system but maximum NR and BCR was achieved in AWD
rice - ZT wheat system.
