Effect of mulching and integrated nutrient management on soil micronutrient status in an inceptisols under coastal agro-ecosystem of Odisha

Abstract

A field experiment has been initiated at Central Research Station, OUAT, Bhubaneswar in split plot design to assess the impacts of mulching on soil micronutrient status in an inceptisols under coastal agro-ecosystem of Odisha at the end of the 5th cropping cycle. The treatment details include two crop establishment methods and two cropping systems that were allotted to the main plots and combination of two mulching to rabi and summer crops and two nutrient management practices to all the crops to the sub-plots, resulting a total of sixteen different combinations. Changes in chemical properties of some micronutrient (Fe, Mn, Cu and Zn) status of a sandy loam soil were measured after 5 years of establishing different soil management strategies, which were deemed to be environmentally sound. The soil micronutrient status of these sandy loam soils was readily altered when large amounts of nutrients were contained in applied mulches and integrated nutrient management. Organic mulch materials, such as crop residues mulch, break down over time. The decomposing mulch must have added nutrient-rich organic matter to the soil that has resulted in increased Fe content (63.14 ppm), Cu content (1.81 ppm), Mn content (8.92 ppm) and Zn content (0.98 ppm). The inclusion of mulch in the cropping system significantly enhanced the Fe (+15.05%), Cu (+26.57%), Mn (+29.28%) and Zn (+10.11%) over the soils without mulching. Integrated nutrient management (INM) is an approach that seeks to both increase in agricultural production and safeguard the environment for future generations. It is a strategy that incorporates both organic and inorganic plant nutrients to attain higher crop productivity, prevent soil degradation, and thereby help meet future food supply needs.