A study on crop-weed competition in field pea comprising of weedy and weed-free conditions upto 30, 60 and 90 days after sowing and at harvest was conducted at the experimental research farm of Pulses Research sub-station, Samba, SKUAST,  Jammu during Rabi seasons of  2003-04 and 2004-05 to find out the critical period of crop-weed competition in field pea. Weed competition index increased with an increase in duration of weedy condition ranging from7.3 to 42.0 during Rabi 2003-04 and 1.19 to 56.3 during rabi 2004-05. On the other hand, increase in weed-free period from sowing to harvest decreased weed competition index from 2.9 to 42.0 during Rabi 2003-04 and 4.3 to 22.0 during 2004-05. Weed free condition beyond 60 days after sowing did not bring significant improvement in field pea seed yield. The highest additional net return (Rs. 2040/ha) and additional net return/rupee invested (0.35) were kept weed free upto 60 days after sowing. The critical period for crop-weed competition was observed to be between 30-60 days after sowing when the crop should be kept free from weeds to prevent the potential yield loss and to economize weeding in field pea.