Progressive alliance of organic manures in ensuring promising productivity in rice

Abstract

Rice is the major staple food of Asia. Self-sufficiency in rice has been a major goal of agricultural research and development in most Asian countries. In 2025 A.D, the global demand for rice would increase by 70 per cent, requiring a production of 800 metric tonnes of unmilled rice against the present production of 600 metric tonnes. It has been repeatedly emphasized that in order to meet the demand, the yield potential of irrigated rice has to be increased from the present yield potential of 4.5 t ha-1 to 8 t ha-1. To realize the full yield potential of rice field experiment was conducted at Annamalai University Experimental Farm, Department of Agronomy, Annamalai University, Annamalainagar (Tamil Nadu), India during the cropping year 2017–2018 to find out the effect of progressive alliance of recommended dose of inorganic fertilizers in combination with organic manures viz., pressmud compost and bone sludge on the growth and yield of rice in the tail-end Cauvery deltaic region. The experiments conducted with four inorganic fertilizers levels (100%, 75%, 50% and 0% RDF) in combination with organic manure sources (FYM 12.5 t ha-1, pressmud compost 5 t ha-1 with and without bone sludge 3 and 6 t ha-1). The experiment was laid out in split plot design and replicated thrice. The results revealed that integrated application of industrial wastes viz., pressmud compost @ 5t ha and bone sludge @ 6 t ha-1 along with 100 per cent recommended dose of fertilizers (M1S3) gave significantly higher promising grain yield of 6209 kg ha-1 compared to other treatments.