Rice (Oryza sativa L.) remains a vital staple for over half of the world's population, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, where lowland rice sustains food security and rural livelihoods. However, productivity in these systems is often constrained by weed competition and suboptimal nutrient management. This study investigated the interactive effects of weed management regimes and fertilizer types on three lowland rice varieties (FARO 44, FARO 57, and FARO 60) under field conditions in Abuja, Nigeria. A split-split plot design was used, comprising three fertilizer treatments (organic, inorganic, and no fertilizer) and four weed management options (standard herbicide rate, reduced herbicide rate, manual weeding, and no weeding), resulting in 12 treatment combinations. Growth parameters including plant height, tiller number, leaf number, leaf area index (LAI), root traits, biomass, and relative growth rate (RGR) were evaluated over two consecutive rainy seasons (2023 and 2024). FARO 60 significantly (p<0.05) exhibited superior vegetative growth including plant heights, root numbers, root length, LAI values and biomass. Conversely, FARO 44 produced the highest tiller (6.49; 6.48) and leaf numbers (9.78) across years. Among management practices, reduced herbicide rate without fertilizer (M2F3), standard herbicide rate with inorganic fertilizer (M1F2), and reduced herbicide rate with inorganic fertilizer (M2F2) consistently enhanced growth. Overall, the findings emphasize that varietal selection combined with integrated weed and nutrient management is crucial for optimizing lowland rice productivity.
HUSSEIN et al. (2026) studied this question.