Vol. 7, Issue 3 (2018)

Author(s):
Guntamukkala Babu Rao and Poornima Yadav PI

Abstract:
A field experiment was conducted during Kharif, 2016 at the farmer’s field in Kerala, to evaluate various sources of silicon on soil pH, Organic carbon (OC), Electrical conductivity (EC) and Soil texture. Experiment was laid out in randomised block design replicated thrice with seven treatments using Uma asthetestvariety.TheinitialsoilpH,OC,ECandsoiltextureofthefieldwereof 4.5, 1.01%, 0.10 dS m^-1 and sandy clay loam. The treatments comprised of silicon sources viz., fine silica, rock dust, rice husk ash and potassium silicate, along with the recommended dose of fertilizers as per Kerala Agricultural University, Package of Practice. Silicon nutrition increased soil pH and OC content in soil after the experiment but have not shown significant influence on EC and soil texture. Among the treatments, recommended dose of NPK kg ha^-1 + fine silica @ 50 kg ha^-1 + rice husk ash @ 250 kg ha^-1, has shown the better results with respect to soil pH and OC.