The effect of organic and inorganic fertilizers on soil physical condition and the productivity of a rice–lentil cropping sequence in India

Abstract

SU MMARYA field experiment lasting 9 years was initiated in 1987 to study the effect of integrated nutrient management involving incorporation of wheat straw (WS) or farmyard manure (FYM) alone or in combination with inorganic fertilizer on a fine loamy mixed hyperthermic udic Ustochrept. Soil physical properties and the productivity of a rice-lentil cropping sequence were examined in a dry land farming system.At the end of the ninth cropping season, addition of organic materials had increased organic carbon, aggregate stability, moisture retention capacity and infiltration rate of the surface soil while reducing the bulk density. Application of inorganic fertilizer alone decreased the stability of macro aggregates and moisture retention capacity but increased the bulk density values. Treatment effects on moisture retentivity were more pronounced in the higher (0 . 3-1 . 5 MPa) suction range. During the first six experimental years, sole application of inorganic fertilizers produced 10-17 % higher grain yield of rice, compared to sole application of organic sources or combined organic and inorganic sources. Annual applications of wheat straw and farmyard manure gave higher grain yields of rice from the seventh year onwards. Grain yields of lentil were higher with organic sources either alone or combined with inorganic nutrients.

Kinetics of soil enzyme activities under different ecosystems: An index of soil quality

“…The variances in kinetic parameters of urease as a result of an increase in Vmax, Km and Vmax/Km due to the variation in physico-chemical properties of soil (Dick et al, 1994;Sarkar et al, 2003), moisture content (Sardans and Peñuelas, 2005;, OM and gradual accumulation of N, which is considered to be the substrate for soil urease (Garcia et al, 1993;Kizilkaya and Bayrakli, 2005;Kizilkaya and Ekberli, 2008), and synthesis of urease enzyme by increasing microbial population. Urease activity shows a positive correlation with N availability, which indicated that this enzyme can be used to make some inferences about the nitrification process in soil and determine if N loses are due to volatilization, nitrification, or denitrification.…”

Evaluation of Organic Matter, Bio-inoculants and Inorganic Fertilizers on Growth and Yield Attributes of Tomato with Respect to the Management of Plant-Parasitic Nematodes

“…Our findings are in agreement with those of (Wange and Kale, 2003;Chaitra and Patil, 2007;Jain et al, 2007) in several other crops. The combined effect of inorganic, organic and biofertilizers proved to be better and this may be due to joint action which led to enhanced vegetative growth and influenced physicochemical properties that imparts favorable soil structure for root growth (Sarkar et al, 2003;Pernes-Debuyser and Tessier, 2004), and enhancing mineral uptake by the roots (Okon and Itzigsohn, 1995). Since the application of organic matter and inorganic fertilizers improved the root growth.…”

A Review on the Effect of Organic and Chemical Fertilizers on Plants

“…DISADVANTAGES OF ORGANIC FERTILIZERS Organic fertilizers improve the structure, chemistry, and biological activity of the soil by providing nutrients and contribute to the quality of soil. They are known for the gradual release of nutrients, and they increase soil organic matter content (Sarkar et al, 2003). Soil organic components are favoured when decomposition is slow.…”