Strip Tillage and Crop Residue Retention Decrease the Size but Increase the Diversity of the Weed Seed Bank under Intensive Rice-Based Crop Rotations in Bangladesh

Cropping under conservation agriculture (CA) has become increasingly attractive among farmers in recent years. However, weed control may be more difficult during the transition to CA from conventional establishment methods due reduction tillage intensity. Conversely, changes dynamics can alter seed bank longer run. In Bangladesh’s intensively cropped rice-based rotations, nature of shifts over time after adopting are poorly known. Two 2-year studies were sampled on-farm experiments wheat-mungbean-winter rice and monsoon rice-mustard-winter rotations. We investigated effects reduced soil disruption form strip-tillage (ST) combined with increased deposition standing reside previous crops (0 vs. 50%). The 0–5, 5–10, 10–15 cm depths quantified a shade-house experiment by measuring emergence 12 months seedling trays. After 2 years field study, year-round count emerged weeds showed that ST plus 50% mulch had lower abundance biomass fewer species than (CT) without residue. perennial Ageratum conyzoides L., Alternanthera philoxeroides Cynodon dactylon Cyperus rotundus Jussia decurrence Walt., Leersia hexandra Scirpus mucronatus (L.) Palla., Solanum torvum Sw. enriched smaller-sized banks terms both density biomass. CT, on other hand, was dominated annual weeds: difformis Cyanotis axillaris Roem., Echinochloa crus-galli Beauv., Eleusine indica Fimbristylis miliacea Vahl., Rotala ramosior L. Overall, residue diverse CT mulch. majority seeds amassed 0–5 depth ST, while most them accumulated layer CT. rotation floristic composition many rotation.