Effect of Organic Manure and Moisture Regimes on Soil Physiochemical Properties, Microbial Biomass Cmic:Nmic:Pmic Turnover and Yield of Mustard Grains in Arid Climate

Soil-Plant-Water Systems and Interactions

To comprehend the soil-plant-water system and how its constituents interact with each other, it is essential to better understand its effect on ecosystems [...].

Effectiveness of different combinations of urea and vermicompost on yield of bitter gourd (Momordicacharantia)

Exclusive use of organic manure in bitter gourd cultivation slows nutrient release, affecting root growth, while inefficient application of fertilizers during transplanting and development stages leads to nutrient losses and increased production costs. The research aimed to evaluate the efficiency of different combinations of urea and vermicompost in bitter gourd production and address the challenges associated with the use of only organic manure. The field experiment conducted in Tulsipur, Dang, utilized a six-treatment randomized complete block design with four replications. The treatments consisted of varying proportions of the recommended dose of urea (16 g plant-1) and vermicompost (280 g plant-1). Among the treatments, T3 (50% urea and 50% vermicompost) exhibited the most prevalent diameter (3.854 cm), length (16.32 cm), fruit count (1.391), weight plant-1 (189.2 g), and weight plot-1 (1848 g) while T4 (25% urea and 75% vermicompost) showed the quickest first flowering (30.37 days) and fruiting (33.75 days). T2 (75% urea and 25% vermicompost) recorded the highest vine length (222.5 cm). Statistically significant differences were observed in most recorded characteristics for T3. The results highlight the slow-release nutrient benefits and soil improvement properties of vermicompost, complemented by the quick-release nutrient attributes of urea. The traits with the lowest yield were observed in the control group (T6). A 50% combination of recommended urea dose and vermicompost is recommended for bitter gourd cultivation, leading to improved growth, yield, and quality, underscoring the benefits of organic fertilizer in this situation. The study's findings contribute to the scientific understanding of optimizing fertilization practices in bitter gourd production, minimizing production costs, reducing nutrient losses, and environmental pollution.

Effect of addition of organic manures on basmati yield, nutrient content and soil fertility status in north-western India

Integrated use of chemical fertilizers with organic manure is becoming a quite promising practice to maintain higher crop productivity and to manage soil health, which is otherwise deteriorated due to intensive cultivation and imbalanced fertilizer use. Thus, the present experiment was conducted for combined application of inorganic fertilizers and organic manures for higher yield and nutrient uptake in basmati rice as well as to restore soil health. The treatments applied in the present study involve T1: control, T2: Farmyard manure (15 t ha^-1), T3: Poultry manure (6 t ha^-1), T4: Press mud (15 t ha^-1), T5: Rice straw compost (6 t ha^-1), T6: Farmyard manure (15 t ha^-1) + 50% N (recommended dose of nitrogen), T7: Poultry manure (6 t ha^-1) + 50% N, T8: Press mud (15 t ha^-1) + 50% N, T9: Rice straw compost (6 t ha^-1) + 50% N, T10: 75% N, T11: Farmyard manure (15 t ha¹) + 75% N, T12: Poultry manure (6 t ha^-1) + 75% N, T13: Press mud (15 t ha^-1) + 75% N, T14: Rice straw compost (6 t ha^-1) + 75% N, T15: 100% N. The integrated use of organic manures and inorganic fertilizers significantly increased the grain and straw yield, macronutrients as well as micronutrients uptake in basmati due to the release of nutrients from decomposition of organic manures. Among different treatments, the addition of PM+75% N showed maximum grain yield, straw yield and sustainability yield index (44.53 q ha^-1, 89.67 q ha^-1 and 0.91 respectively) as well as the highest uptake of nitrogen (58.29 and 65.39 kg ha^-1), phosphorus (25.04 and 23.24 kg ha^-1) and potassium (15.26 and 118.95 kg ha^-1) in grain and straw, respectively. Similar results were observed for zinc (Zn), copper (Cu), iron (Fe) and manganese (Mn) uptake under treatment involving PM+75% N with values 183.9, 26.18, 339.3 and 355.8 g ha^-1 in grain and 205.3, 25.62, 2627.3 and 278 g ha^-1 in straw, respectively. Additionally, correlation studies showed that the grain and straw yield of basmati exhibited a significantly positive correlation with soil P, Cu and Fe. The study suggested that the partial substitution of inorganic fertilizers with organic manures did not lower crop yield and nutrient uptake. Thus, integrated application of organic and inorganic fertilizers can be used for the sustainability of basmati-wheat system and to retain the soil fertility which is otherwise deteriorated with sole use of inorganic fertilizers.

Response of Wheat Cultivars to Organic and Inorganic Nutrition: Effect on the Yield and Soil Biological Properties

The deterioration of soil biological health is the most important aspect associated with the sustainability of cereal-based food production systems. The application of organic nutrient sources is widely accepted and recommended for sustaining crop productivity and preserving soil fertility. Therefore, a study was carried out to assess the effects of different levels of farmyard manure (FYM10: 10 t ha−1, FYM20: 20 t ha−1, FYM30: 30 t ha−1), including inorganic fertilizer (NPK) on the soil and the biological properties of five high-yielding wheat cultivars (HD 2967, DPW 621-50, PBW 550, and WH 1105) over a three-year period (2014–2015 to 2016–2017). The results showed that the application of NPK produced significantly higher yields compared to different levels of FYM and the control during all the study years. The continuous addition of a higher rate of FYM at 30 t ha−1 was found to be beneficial in terms of enhancing crop yield gain, thereby bridging the yield gap to only 7.2% in the third year; the gap was 69.1% in the first year with NPK application. The microbial population and microbial biomass carbon were significantly higher in the FYM treatments compared to the NPK treatment. The activities of different soil enzymes were observed to be significantly maximum in the FYM30 treatment. Similarly, the addition of FYM significantly improved the soil respiration and microbial activity over the NPK and control treatments. Based on the principal component analysis, fluorescein diacetate, bacteria, fungi, and actinomycetes were observed as sensitive biological parameters for the assessing of soil biological health. The soil biological index (SBI) determined with the sensitive parameters was in the decreasing order of FYM30 (0.70), FYM20 (0.61), FYM10 (0.55), NPK (0.18), and control (0.15). Considering both the SBI and the sustainability yield index together, the performance of WH 1105 was found to be better compared to the rest of the wheat cultivars. Our results conclude that the application of FYM in the long run increases the crop yield (24.3 to 38.9%) and improves the soil biological process, leading to the improved biological index of the soil.