Nutrient analysis of Kunapa jala and Pancha gavya and their evaluation on germination of Ashwagandha and Kalamegha seeds: A comparative study

Abstract

BackgroundVrikshayurveda, an ancient science of plant life described by Surapala, deals with healthy growth and productivity of plants, which has clearly outlined a systematized agricultural practice that insisted the use of Kunapa jala (KJ) and Pancha gavya (PG).ObjectiveAn experiment was conducted to validate KJ and PG by nutrient analysis and their effect on the germination parameters of Ashwagandha and Kalamegha seeds in comparison with other treatment groups.Materials and methodsKJ and PG were prepared according to the classical references. The nutrient contents and germination parameters of KJ and PG were compared with other groups namely control (Contr), farmyard manure (FYM), humic acid (HA) and NPK.ResultsThe pH and EC were 5.793, 2.653 dS/m and 5.584, 2.216 dS/m for KJ and PG respectively. KJ possess highest nutrient contents followed by PG. The germination parameters revealed the better activity of NPK followed by KJ, PG, HA, FYM and Contr.ConclusionKJ and PG were found to be good in nutrient contents and were found to be effective on studied germination parameters of Ashwagandha and Kalamegha seeds.

Response of chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) to seed treatment and foliar application of liquid organic under different doses of nutrients

“…The presence of amino acids, vitamins and growth regulators like IAA and GA 3 in herbal kunapajala formulations may trigger the α-amylase activity in kunapajala primed seeds and consequently resulted into rapid seedling emergence and better establishment. Significant improvement in field emergence and plant stand of primed seeds of chickpea over control also have been reported by Farooq et al (2019) and Ankad et al (2017). However, field emergence % and plant stand were reduced with increasing concentration of kunapajala in priming media which may be due to supra optimal dose of organic product which is normally specific to crops and reduced water uptake as well as slow breakdown of starch.…”

“…Kunapajala is liquid fermented organic manure made from animal waste containing animal flesh, dung, urine, bones, marrow and skins (non-herbal kunapajala) or the plant products (herbal kunapajala). Kunapajala is mainly used as foliar nutrition, soil drenching (Kavya et al, 2020) and priming medium for many agricultural and horticultural crops because of having biostimulant, nutrition and antimicrobial properties.This liquid organic concoction contains macro and micro nutrients (Ankad et al, 2017), vitamins, growth regulators like IAA and GA 3 , essential amino acidsand beneficial microbes like Rhizobium, Azotobacter, Azospirillum, phosphorus solubilizing bacteriaand Pseudomonas (Ali et al, 2012). Application of liquid organic along with chemical fertilizer significantly enhances the plant growth due to improved mobilization and rapid availability of essential plant nutrients.…”

Evaluation of Vrikshayurveda treatments on physiological attributes and production of diterpenoids in Andrographis paniculata (Burm.f.) Nees.

“…The preparation of KJ and PG and their benefits have been well discussed, which have great relevance even today in the agriculture and horticulture sectors. [ 3 4 5 ] Although there are reports suggesting that fertilizers influence the growth attributes and production of secondary metabolites,[ 6 7 ] evaluation of the use of these age-old organic matters on growth and secondary metabolite production in medicinal plants are limited.…”

Revisiting the oldest manure of India, Kunapajala: Assessment of its animal waste recycling potential as a source of plant biostimulant

“…Therefore, it has been recommended widely as a foliar spray or soil drenching for several crops, such as rice (Oryza sativa), mustard (Brassica campestris), and black gram (Vigna mungo), however with more emphasis on vegetables in India, such as okra (Abelmoschus esculentus), tomato (Solanum lycopersicum), chili (Capsicum annuum), and cowpea (Vigna unguiculata) (Mishra, 2007;Ali et al, 2012;Deshmukh et al, 2012;Sarkar et al, 2014;Kavya and Ushakumari, 2020). In addition, the Kunapajala formulation also showed a significant impact on the growth, physiological, biochemical, yield, and quality attributes of medicinal plants, Ashwagandha (Withania sominifera), and Kalamegha (Andrographis paniculata) (Ankad et al, 2017(Ankad et al, , 2018. However, despite in-depth physico-chemical and microbiological characterization of Kunapajala (Jani et al, 2017;Chakraborty et al, 2019) and its positive effect on plant growth, no attempt has been made, to date, to understand the population dynamics of microbes in Kunapajala and their functions in animal waste decomposition, nutrient recycling, and mineralization processes.…”