Vol. 12, Issue 9 (2023)

Author(s):
M Latha, K Hema, P Ratna Prasad, PRK Prasad, R Lakshmipathy and V Srinivasa Rao

Abstract:
Crop demand for nutrients is met by a combination of inherent soil fertility and externally applied nutrients. For high yielding crops with high rates of dry matter accumulation and matching high rates of nutrient uptake such as rice and maize, soil must allow unrestricted root growth be able to absorb nutrients at the rate for maximum growth. In this context, adoption of integrated nitrogen management involving organic and inorganic sources is the best nutrient technology available. A field experiment was conducted for two consecutive years (2015-16 & 2016-17) on clayloam soils of Agricultural College Farm, Bapatla. The experiment was laid out in a two sample t-test for rice in kharif season with 2 treatments and replicated thrice. The treatments consists of M₁ 100% RDF, M₂ (50% RDN + 25% N through FYM + 25% N through neem cake + Azospirillum + PSB @ 2.5 kg ha^-1 (INM). During the immediate kharif, the experiment was laid out in a split plot design without disturbing the soil for succeeding rabi maize crop with the two treatments given to kharif rice as main plot treatments and popular cultivars of rice (BPT 5204), Maize (Sandhya), were used for this study. In rabi the recommended dose of fertilizers applied for maize crop and the residual effect of integrated nitrogen management on rice fallow rabi maize was studied by taking drymatter production, kernel yield and nutrient contents of maize crop. INM application to preceding rice not only improved the fertility status of the soil and also improved the supply of nutrients to succeeding rabi crop of maize. Application of INM to preceding rice crop, increased the maize crop yield by 25-30% when compared to M₁. The residual effect of Integrated nitrogen management treatment was played an important role in enhancing the nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium contents and uptakes by maize crop.