Integrated nutrient management in underground vegetable crops

Abstract

Vegetable comprises large number of plants, consumed as leaf, fruits, flowers, stem, roots etc. They are rich in nutrients like carbohydrates, proteins, fats, minerals and vitamins. They are mostly cultivated around the year throughout the country. India is the second largest producer of vegetables next to China in the world. It is cultivated in an area of 9575 (‘000’ ha) with production of 166608 (‘000’ MT) with the productivity of 17.40 MT/ha (NHB, 2016). Now a days, modern agriculture depend heavily on use of chemical fertilizers for boosting crop yield. However, indiscriminate use of fertilizers has an adverse effect on long term soil health and environment which has global attention. The realistic solution is Integrated Nutrient Management system are the combined application of chemical fertilizers, along with organic manure, green manure, bio-fertilizer and other organic recyclable materials for crop production.