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Article

Legume–Cereal Cover Crops Improve Soil Properties but Fall Short on Weed Suppression in Chickpea Systems

1
Agricultural Research Station and Cooperative Extension, College of Agriculture, Virginia State University, Petersburg, VA 23806, USA
2
The Agroecosystem Management Research Unit, USDA-ARS, 3720 East Campus Loop South, Lincoln, NE 68583, USA
3
School of Natural Resources, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 3310 Holdrege St., Lincoln, NE 68583, USA
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Agronomy 2025, 15(8), 1893; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy15081893
Submission received: 23 June 2025 / Revised: 22 July 2025 / Accepted: 31 July 2025 / Published: 6 August 2025
(This article belongs to the Section Weed Science and Weed Management)

Abstract

Chickpea is a highly weed-prone crop with limited herbicide options and high labor demands, raising the following question: Can fall-planted legume–cereal cover crops (CCs) improve soil properties while reducing herbicide use and manual weeding pressure? To explore this, we evaluated the effect of fall-planted winter rye (WR) alone in 2021 and mixed with hairy vetch (HV) in 2022 and 2023 at Randolph farm in Petersburg, Virginia. The objectives were two-fold: (a) to examine the effect of CCs on soil properties using monthly growth dynamics and biomass harvested from fifteen 0.25 m2-quadrants and (b) to evaluate the efficiency of five termination methods: (1) green manure (GM); (2) GM plus pre-emergence herbicide (GMH); (3) burn (BOH); (4) crimp mulch (CRM); and (5) mow-mulch (MW) in suppressing weeds in chickpea fields. Weed distribution, particularly nutsedge, was patchy and dominant on the eastern side. Growth dynamics followed an exponential growth rate in fall 2022 (R2 ≥ 0.994, p < 0.0002) and a three-parameter sigmoidal curve in 2023 (R2 ≥ 0.972, p < 0.0047). Biomass averaged 55.8 and 96.9 t/ha for 2022 and 2023, respectively. GMH consistently outperformed GM in weed suppression, though GM was not significantly different from no-till systems by the season’s end. Kabuli-type chickpeas under GMH had significantly higher yields than desi types. Pooled data fitted well to a three-parametric logistic curve, predicting half-time to 50% weed coverage at 35 (MM), 38 (CRM), 40 (BOH), 46 (GM), and 53 (GMH) days. Relapses of CCs were consistent in no-till systems, especially BOH and MW. Although soil properties improved, CCs alone did not significantly suppress weed.
Keywords: cover crops; weed suppression; chickpea; till; no-till cover crops; weed suppression; chickpea; till; no-till

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MDPI and ACS Style

Mersha, Z.; Ibarra-Bautista, M.A.; Birru, G.; Bucciarelli, J.; Githinji, L.; Shiferaw, A.S.; Ren, S.; Rutto, L. Legume–Cereal Cover Crops Improve Soil Properties but Fall Short on Weed Suppression in Chickpea Systems. Agronomy 2025, 15, 1893. https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy15081893

AMA Style

Mersha Z, Ibarra-Bautista MA, Birru G, Bucciarelli J, Githinji L, Shiferaw AS, Ren S, Rutto L. Legume–Cereal Cover Crops Improve Soil Properties but Fall Short on Weed Suppression in Chickpea Systems. Agronomy. 2025; 15(8):1893. https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy15081893

Chicago/Turabian Style

Mersha, Zelalem, Michael A. Ibarra-Bautista, Girma Birru, Julia Bucciarelli, Leonard Githinji, Andualem S. Shiferaw, Shuxin Ren, and Laban Rutto. 2025. "Legume–Cereal Cover Crops Improve Soil Properties but Fall Short on Weed Suppression in Chickpea Systems" Agronomy 15, no. 8: 1893. https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy15081893

APA Style

Mersha, Z., Ibarra-Bautista, M. A., Birru, G., Bucciarelli, J., Githinji, L., Shiferaw, A. S., Ren, S., & Rutto, L. (2025). Legume–Cereal Cover Crops Improve Soil Properties but Fall Short on Weed Suppression in Chickpea Systems. Agronomy, 15(8), 1893. https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy15081893

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