Soil Physicochemical Properties as Affected by Organic Weed Management and Conservation Agriculture in Rice- Maize Cropping System of IGP

Author: Subhra Sahoo, D. K. Roy, M. Kumar, Rajeswari Das and M.J. Baldhaniya

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Abstract

Soil health is vital for agriculture, both in the short and long term. To sustain plants, animals and humans, soil need to have a sustained capacity to function as a dynamic living ecosystem. Thus, to maintain soil health, integrating the goods of both conservation agriculture and organic crop management practices can be a potential area of research. To explore this idea, an investigation was conducted at Research Farm, Rajendra Agricultural University, Pusa during kharif and rabi, 2020. The experiment was planned as a split-plot design and was replicated thrice. There were twenty treatment combinations, with four tillage practices as main-plot and five organic weed management treatments in the sub-plot. Soil from the experimental field (0-15 cm depth) was sampled and laboratory analysis following the standard procedures of various physico-chemical properties was conducted to study the combined effects of organic weed management and conservation agriculture. The results showed a reduct

Keywords

Conservation tillage; Organic weed management; P- enriched vermicompost mulch, Soil organic carbon (SOC); Cation exchange capacity (CEC), water holding capacity (WHC)

Conclusion

Organic weed management and tillage influenced all the physico-chemical properties. The soil under study is calcareous so a reduction in soil pH and EC with the adoption of conservation tillage and mulch application can create an appropriate environment for many soil biochemical processes. There was an increase in the SOC content due to the application of mulch and residue retention in CA plots. While bulk density reduced there was an increase in WHC in mulched and residue retained permanent bed plots. Better soil physical condition will have good soil aeration, thus can promote easy crop establishment, root penetration water availability during crop growth. Increased SOC and microbial activity can increase the availability of soil nutrients. Higher CEC indicates better nutrient absorption and crop growth. From the present investigation, it can be concluded that adopting conservation tillage practice with residue retention along with organic mulching can substantially improve soil hea

References

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How to cite this article

Sahoo, S., Roy, D.K., Kumar, M., Das, R. and Baldhaniya, M.J. (2021). Soil Physicochemical Properties as Affected by Organic Weed Management and Conservation Agriculture in Rice- Maize Cropping System of IGP. Biological Forum – An International Journ