Effect of natural farming components on yield of chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) and physico-chemical properties of soil under Bundelkhand region

Abstract

A field experiment was carried out during 2023-24 and 2024-25 to assess the effect of natural farming components (NFC) on the yield and yield attributes and soil physico-chemical properties of chickpea cultivation. The study comprised twelve treatments, including different natural farming components and organic mulching treatments arranged in a randomized block design. The research findings indicated that the application NFC significantly enhanced yield attributes and yield particularly the flower initiation, number of pods per plant, grain yields, seed index, organic carbon and available nutrients except soil pH. The result also revealed that the highest grain yield was recorded in T12 (16.51 and 16.5 q/ha), followed by T9 (14.33 and 14.36 q/ha) and T8 (14.16 and 14.19 q/ha) however, the no-mulching (T11) treatment recorded lowest grain yield (12.78 and 12.81 q/ha) in both experimental years. In addition, NFC and organic residue mulching improved soil organic carbon and increased the availability of essential nutrients. Overall, the results suggest that integrating NFC act as a sustainable and effective approach to enhancing chickpea yield as well as improving soil health and long-term agricultural sustainability.