Effects of nitrogen management practices on foxtail millet production and economics under foxtail millet-chickpea cropping system in the Tungabhadra project area of Karnataka, India

Abstract

A field experiment was carried out during Rabi season of 2021-22 and 2022-23 in foxtail millet-chickpea cropping system to study the effect of nutrient management practices viz. N1: 25% N through inorganic fertilizer + 75% N through organic manures, N2: 50% N through inorganic fertilizer + 50% N through organic manures, N3: 75% N through inorganic fertilizer + 25% N through organic manures and N4: 100% RDF through inorganic fertilizers. Organic manures on crop growth, yield attributes and yield of chickpea. The pooled mean data of two years study revealed that among the treatments, the highest seed yield (6367 kg ha-1) and stover yield (2084 kg ha-1) of chickpea were recorded with the application of 100% RDF through inorganic fertilizers followed by the application of 75% N through inorganic fertilizers + 25% N through organic manures (seed yield: 1832 kg ha-1 and stover yield: 3875 kg ha-1), both were statistically on par with each other while superior over rest of the treatments. Similar trend was also recorded for attributes viz., number of pods per plant, number of seeds per pod, seed weight per plant, test weight and growth attributes viz., plant height and total dry matter production during the both the years of pooled data. The findings of the present study emphasizes the importance of integrated nutrient management techniques in chickpea production, particularly in the Tungabhadra project area of Karnataka, to boost production, improve agricultural performance and promote sustainable agriculture.