ALLELOPATHIC EFFECT OF FIELD BINDWEED (CONVOLVULUS ARVENSIS L.) WATER EXTRACTS ON GERMINATION AND INITIAL GROWTH OF MAIZE

Field bindweed (Convolvulus arvensis) is a noxious weed of agricultural crops. The objective of the research was to study allelopathic effect of above ground mass of field bindweed on maize using Petri dish bioassay. Water extracts from stem and leaf dry plant powder in three concentrations (10, 50 and 100 g/l) were tested on germination, seedling length and fresh biomass of two maize hybrids (Bc 574 and OSSK 596) in experiment set out as completely randomized design. Reduction of seed germination amounted up to 36%. Stem extract showed higher inhibition effect on germination and shoot length, while both stem and leaf equally inhibited root length and fresh weight of maize seedling. With the increase of concentration, germination and growth parameters of maize decreased. Lowest concentrations of both stem and leaf extract showed stimulatory effect on shoot length of maize for 19.2 and 26.9%. Maize hybrids differed in their susceptibility to water extracts. The results indicated that field bindweed water extracts have both inhibitory and stimulatory effects on germination and growth parameters depending on plant part, concentration and maize hybrid. Key words: Allelopathy, field bindweed, hybrids, maize, water extracts