Traditional and improved animal- drawn weeders are widely used for mechanical control of weeds in India. Straight blade hoes and triangular blade hoes made by blacksmiths and village artisans are traditionally used. Animal-drawn cultivators withshovels, sweeps or duckfoot sweeps were introduced from several research centres. Tool carriers with pneumatic and steel wheels were also introduced for tillage, sowing, weeding and inter-culture operations. Use of rotary tools, e.g., discs and rotatingrods is limited. Animal-drawn weeder mulcher (IISR, Lucknow) made use of four straight blades in the form of a cage. A 'V' shaped blade was recommended for conventional Bakhar (blade harrow) by CIAE. A triangular blade hoe was developed and introduced byATRC, Bardoli for secondary tillage and weeding operations. Studies on four basic shapes of weeding tools; namely straight blade, curved blade, triangular blade and sweep were undertaken at CIAE. Efforts were made to optimize tool parameters of the fourshapes for minimum draught force in black soil. There has been growing emphasis on integrated weed management in the farming system and animal drawn weeders find important place in the system. The status on animal-drawn weeders developed, used andevaluated in the country are highlighted in this paper. The major thrust for the future should be on adaptation, manufacturing promotion, training and demonstration of improved animal-drawn weeders to reduce the cost of weeding.
展开▼
