Nutrient Uptake Patterns and Soil Fertility Assessment in Diverse Crop Rotations under Irrigated Dry Conditions in Telangana, India

Abstract

An experiment was conducted during the 2023-24 kharif and rabi seasons at the College Farm, AICRP on the IFS unit, PJTSAU, Hyderabad. To develop efficient cropping systems for the Telangana region, it is essential to evaluate them based on productivity, nutrient uptake and economic viability. This study assessed various cropping sequences with regard to nutrient absorption and soil fertility status specific to Telangana and the findings were presented here. The rice-maize cropping system demonstrated higher nutrient uptake, resulting in a higher rice grain equivalent yield compared to Bt cotton under region-specific system. The Bt cotton + greengram (1:2) - sesame cropping system exhibited significantly higher nutrient uptake compared to the pigeonpea + foxtail millet (2:5) - sweet corn, making it more effective for sustaining long-term soil health. Among the crops cultivated for family nutritional security, the fingermillet – groundnut demonstrated significantly higher nutrient uptake compared to the pigeonpea + sorghum (2:3) - sesame. The nutrient uptake in the fodder bajra - lucerne system was higher than that in the fodder sorghum - fodder oats system when comparing the two fodder cropping systems. It has been observed that fodder systems required a greater amount of nutrients for their growth and development compared to other cropping systems.