CORRELATIONS AMONG GRAIN YIELD, YIELD AND WEED ATTRIBUTES OF MAIZE (ZEA MAYS L.) AS INFLUENCED BY WEED CONTROL METHOD AND POULTRY MANURE RATE IN KANO STATE NIGERIA

Field trials were conducted during the rainy season of 2017 at Teaching and Research Farm of Bayero University and Kano State Livestock development Centre Dangora. To determine the magnitude and nature of the association between growth characters and grain yield of maize, as well as the percentage contribution of each of this independent variable on the dependant variable (yield).The trails consist of six weed control methods, three levels of poultry manure and three varieties of maize. The experiment was laid out in a split-split plot design with variety allocated to the main plot, poultry manure to the sub-plot while weed control method to the sub-sub plot, and was replicated three times.  Grain yield correlated positively and significantly with growth and yield characters evaluated while weed dry weight and weed index were highly negatively correlated. The direct and indirect contributions results indicate that plant height had the highest direct contribution at BUK and Dangora in 2016 and Doka 2017 while plant dry matter accumulation had the highest direct contribution at Dangora in 2017. Cob diameter had the least direct effect in the study; the highest indirect effect was from cob diameter through plant height. The percentage individual contribution to grain yield showed that plant height made the highest contribution at BUK and Dangora in 2016, while cob diameter at both locations and plant dry matter at Dangora resulted in the least contribution. The combined contribution of dry matter and 100-seed weight was the highest positive contribution at BUK and that of plant height via 100-seed weight all in 2016 while cob length via 100-seed weight made the least negative contribution at BUK.