Vol. 10, Special Issue 1, Part L (2026)

A field experiment was conducted during the rabi season of 2016 at the College Farm, College of Agriculture, Professor Jayashankar Telangana Agricultural University (PJTAU), Rajendranagar, Hyderabad, to assess the effectiveness of new-generation herbicide molecules on growth and productivity of rabi maize (Zea mays L.). The experiment was laid out in a randomized block design with eight weed management treatments and three replications. The results revealed that weed management practices exerted a pronounced effect on crop growth and yield attributes. Among the treatments, pre-emergence application of atrazine at 1.0 kg a.i. ha⁻¹ followed by intercultural operations and hand weeding at 20 and 40 days after sowing (DAS) resulted in superior performance in terms of dry matter accumulation, yield attributes, grain yield, stover yield, and harvest index. Sequential and tank-mix applications involving atrazine and topramezone also improved crop performance but were comparatively less effective than the integrated weed management approach. The unweeded control recorded the lowest values for all growth and yield parameters due to severe crop-weed competition. The study clearly demonstrates that integrated weed management involving both chemical and mechanical methods is more efficient than sole chemical control for enhancing productivity of rabi maize.