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ALLELOPATHIC POTENTIAL OF WEED SPECIES INVADING KALLAR GRASS (LEPTOCHLOA FUSCA (L.) KUNTH) IN SALINE AGRICULTURAL LAND

KHALID MAHMOOD, KAUSER A. MALIK, KHALID H. SHEIKH*, ALTAF HUSSAIN AND M.A.K. LODHI**

Abstract: Cynodon dartyton (L.) Pers., Desmostachya bipinnata (L.) Stapf, Kochia indica Wight, Polypogon monspeliensis (L.) Desf., Sporobolus arabicus Boiss., and Suaeda fruticosa (L.) Forssk. established in well defined patches in saline fields planted with Kallar grass (Leptochloa fusca (L.) Kunth). Water extracts, shoot material of different species decomposing in soil and leachates from soils amended with shoot materials inhibited seed germination and/or growth of Kallar grass to varying degrees. Each species showed allelopathic potential against Kallar grass in one or more tests. Six allelochemicals viz., benzoic, ferulic, caffeic, p-OHbenzoic, vanillic and syringic acids were identified in water and/or hydrolysis extracts of different species. Four of these compounds (present in all species) inhibited seed germination and seedling growth of Kallar grass. Allelopathic influence of invading species and autotoxicity are important factors causing elimination of Kallar grass from weed patches and its decreased productivity in older stands.

Nuclear Institute for Agriculture and Biology (NIAB) P. O. Box 128, Faisalabad, Pakistan.
Department of Botany, University of The Punjab, Lahore, Pakistan.
Department of Biology, Forest Park College, St, Louis, USA.