Abstract

Maize is one of the major staple foods in Uganda, providing over 40% of Uganda’s daily calorie consumption. Tillage practice is one of the crucial factors that influence crop productivity through maintenance of soil health. The aim of this study therefore is to validate the effect of tillage practice on the vegetative growth and yield of maize in Uganda. The trial was established on-station at Ngetta Zonal Agricultural Research and Development Institute, Lira district and on-farm in Njeru Town Council, Buikwe district. It was laid out in a factorial design with two tillage practices (conventional tillage, CT and minimum tillage, MT) as the main factors and two maize varieties (Longe 10H and Longe 5) as the levels. The results showed significant differences in plant height between the two tillage methods (p< 0.001). Conventional tillage practice had a higher mean maize grain yield per hectare compared to minimum tillage although the difference was insignificant (p<0.332). Thus, the adoption of minimum tillage practice by farmers in Uganda would require investment in organic herbicides in order to control the weeds sustainably and boost maize productivity.

Key words: Conventional tillage, minimum tillage, vegetative growth, yield, maize.