Performance of Soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merrill] under Organic and Inorganic Nutrient Management in Semi- Arid Tropical Conditions in Central India

Abstract

Soybean is an important leguminous and oilseed crop of India and extensively grown all over Madhya Pradesh due to its wide adaptability to agro-climatic conditions. However a continuous decline in soybean productivity has been observed and nutrient imbalance is one of the important identified factors. The present study was conducted to explore the nutrient management option for sustained productivity of soybean. The performance of soybean crop under various nutrient management practices was studied with 9 different combinations of five levels of nitrogen (0, 20, 30, 40 and 60 kg ha-1), five levels of phosphorous (0, 13, 20, 26 and 35 kg ha-1), two levels of farm yard manure (0 and 6t ha-1) and two levels of crop residue (0 and 5t ha-1) replicated thrice. These combinations were T1-N0P0 (unfertilized control); T2-N20P13; T3-N30P20; T4-N40P26; T5-N60P35; T6-FYM6t+T2; T7-Residues 5t+T2; T8-FYM @ 6t ha-1 and T9-Crop residues 5t ha-1. The performance of soybean and change in soil properties were studied. The results revealed that, the combined application of organic and inorganic fertilizer application positively influenced the plant height, number of branches, number of pods plant-1, number of seeds pod-1, yield and test weight of soybean. Further, the combined application of FYM and inorganic fertilizers improved the soil organic carbon and nutrient availability.