COMPETITIVE REPLACEMENT OF OBNOXIOUS WEEDS PARTHENIUM HYSTEROPHORUS THROUGH SOME INDIGENOUS, TRADITIONAL & MEDICINAL WILD WEEDS, IN ITS NATURAL HABITAT OF MALWA REGION, MADHYA PRADESH (INDIA).

A field experiment has been conducted to assess the potential of some medicinally important weed plant species viz. Cassia tora, Cassia occidentalis, and Achyranthus aspera on the removal of Congress grass. Parthenium necessary grass evil in herbs; it can cause toxic effects and serious diseases on human and animal health. Parthenium hysterophorous is a strong intraspecific competitor for native natural weeds and all herbaceous plants. It is a worldwide problem because native herbaceous plants reduce day by day through intraspecific competitive activity. The authors have traced and surveyed this problem and selected local native plant species viz. Cassia tora, Cassia occidentalis, and Achyranthus aspera, and conducted experiments for three consecutive years (2009, 2010, and 2011) in the Malwa region of Madhya Pradesh India. During the three years of the study period, observed (20) significant reduction in the density of obnoxious Parthenium weed by producing fast competition through selected all three native weeds and respectively by increasing the density of C. occidentalis (5.84) < C. tora (5.1) < A. aspera (3.3).

Keywords: Achyranthus aspera, Cassia tora, Cassia occidentalis, Congress grass, Parthenium, and Obnoxious weeds.