Integrated Manure and Fertilizer Application: A Pathway to Enhanced Rice Yield and Soil Health

Abstract

A research study was carried out in the Soil Science field laboratory of Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh during the Aman season of 2021 to examine the effect of various manure and fertilizer combinations for optimizing the growth and yield of rice. The experiment employed a Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with 3 replications across eight treatments. The treatment combinations were: T­1 (Control), T2 (100% Recommended Fertilizer Dose (RFD)), T3 (75% RFD + Cowdung (CD) @ 5 t ha-1), T4 (75% RFD + Poultry manure (PM) @ 3 t ha-1), T5 (75% RFD + Compost @ 5 t ha-1), T6 (75% RFD + Dhaincha Green Manure (GM) @ 10 t ha-1), T7 (50% RFD +CD @ 2.5 t ha-1 + PM @ 1.5 t ha-1) and T8 (50% RFD + Compost @ 2.5 t ha­-1 + Dhaincha GM 5 t ha-1). Statistical analysis conducted using R programming revealed that T6 markedly improved growth metrics and yield-related traits, leading to a 12.2% rise in grain yield and a 13.24% rise in straw yield compared to T2, where only chemical fertilizers were applied. This treatment also achieved the greatest macronutrient content and uptake, outperforming other treatments (T3, T4, and T5) with equal nutrient amounts. Therefore, application of 75% recommended fertilizer dose along with dhaincha green manure (10 t ha-1) offers a promising strategy for successfully cultivating BRRI dhan71 with a good soil health. This approach offers farmers a cost-effective method to boost productivity and support long-term soil fertility, and policymakers could promote it to enhance agricultural sustainability.