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Page 1: Chapter II

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CHAPTER-2

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

Review of literature pertaining to “Effect of integrated nutrient

management on growth and yield of bottle gourd” are presented in this

chapter.

Organic farming plays a vital role to bring stability, sustainability to

Agriculture and also avoid over dependence of chemical fertilizers and

pesticides. According to APEDA, organically grown vegetables have better

export potential. The health and nutrition consciousness coupled with buying

capacity have created good market for organic foods. Nowadays, consumer

preference is more for organically grown produce because they are free of toxic

chemical residues and have concern for environment.

Bottle gourd (Langaneria sciceraria L.) being a short duration

cucurbitaceous crop, put forth continuous vegetative growth and the yield and

quality are largely influenced by the application of nutrients. There is a need to

maintain high nutrient status in soil for its satisfactory growth and yield. Many

research workers have revealed the usefulness of the application of plant

nutrients through organic sources like FYM, poultry manure, coir pith compost,

vermiwash, and panchakavya. These nutrient sources increase the nutrient use

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efficiency of the soil and thus enhance the crop productivity as well as quality

of the produce.

Recently, the concept of integrated nutrient management (INM) towards

better crop production has paved the way for sustainable horticulture. The basic

principles lie in maintenance of soil fertility through judicious use of inorganic

fertilizers and organic manures. Organic manures act potential sources of not

only for macro nutrients but also micronutrients, but the quantity varies

depending upon the nature, sources and extent of decomposition (Katyal, 1979).

Very little research work has been attempted in this line on snake gourd.

Hence, the available literatures on integrated nutrient management practices on

certain major vegetable crops are reviewed hereunder.

2.1. Effect of FYM

2.1.1. Effect of FYM on physical and nutritional attributes

Farmyard manure is one of the traditional organic manure and is most

readily available to the farmers. On an average, well rotten FYM contains 0.5

percent N, 0.2 percent P2O5 and 0.5 percent K2O (Gaur et al., 1971). Farmyard

manure seems to act directly in increasing crop yields by supplying nitrogen,

phosphorus and sulphur in available forms to the plants through biological

decomposition. Moreover, it improves physical properties of soil such as

aggregation, aeration, permeability and water holding capacity.

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Also it helps to increase the productivity of the soil by improving soil

chemical properties viz., soil organic carbon content, increase the availability of

both major and minor nutrients and availability of nutrients for longer period,

biological properties increased decomposition rate. Whereas Sharma and Mitra

(1989) reported that the FYM contains 26.1 % C, 1.71 % K on dry weight basis

and C: N ratio of 15:1. The FYM used in the trail plots of

Sriramachandarasekharan et al., (1996) had 1.2 % N, 0.21 % P, 1.96 % K, 26.90

% C and C: N ratio was 22.40. The enhanced yield of crops due to application

of FYM might be due to rich nutrient content.

2.1.2. Effect FYM of on growth and yield of vegetables

Bolotskikh and Levic (1987) conducted an experiment in cucumber and

reported that the highest yield (28.2 t ha-1) and economic return were observed

after applying 90:60:60 Kg NPK ha-1. Natarajan (1990) reported that application

of FYM @ 25 ha-1 as basal along with N: P: K registered maximum plant height

and dry yield of chilli. Muniz et al. (1992) reported cucumber supplied with

FYM at 40 t ha-1 and NPK @ 240:960:480 kg ha-1 exhibited the maximum yield.

Balashanmugam et al. (1988) found that application of FYM

@ 25 t ha-1 increased the yield (32.37 kg ha-1) of fresh rhizome in turmeric.

Meena Nair and Peter (1990) stated that application of FYM to chillies @ 30 t

ha -1 enhanced the fresh fruit yield of 3.6 q ha -1. Damke et al (1988) observed

that highest plant height and yield of chilli was recorded with application of

FYM @ 15 t ha-1 along with 50 kg each of N, P and K. Further, Srlekekov and

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Rankov (1989) also reported that higher plant height, plant canopy and yield

were recorded with the application of FYM @ 20 t ha -1 along with 100:80:100

kg NPK ha-1 in chillies.

According to Natarajan (1990), application of FYM @ 25 t ha-1 as basal

along with N, P and K registered maximum plant height (126.20 cm), highest

number of branches (17.36) and highest dry yield of chilli (1.83 t h-1). Meera

Nair and Peter (1990) revealed that application of higher rates of both organics

(15 t FYM ha-1) and inorganic fertilizers (175:40:75 NPK ha-1) increased the

fruit weight of chilli during all the three seasons as compared to inorganic or

organic manures alone. Agarwal et al. (1995) found that organic amendments

and nitrogen hastened the leaf appearance and found to increase the leaf area

and leaf longevity.

A study conducted by Renuka and Ravishankar (1998)

reported that application of FYM combined with biogas slurry were found to

increase the number of primary branches, earliness in flowering, number of

fruits per plant and superior quality of large size fruits in tomato.

Nanthakumar and Veeraragavathatham (1998) observed that due to combined

application of organic manure @ 12.5 t ha-1 of FYM and biofertilizers @ 2 kg

ha-1 each of Azospirillum and Phosphobacteria along with 75 per cent of the

recommended dose of inorganic N and P increased the yield (36.55 t ha-1) in

brinjal var. Palur-1.

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In brinjal, Subbarao et al. (1998) reported that application of organic

manure (FYM + vermicompost), recorded the highest leaf area, number of

leaves, dry matter production and maximum number of fruits per plant. Soil

treated with different combinations of the organic amendments and three

chemicals significantly increased the plant height, girth, leaves per plant,

branches per plant and spread of tomatoes in cv. Punjab Chohara (Amrendra

Kumar Prasad et al., 1997).

Chavan et al. (1997) recorded the highest ascorbic acid content of 241.2

mg 100g-1 in green chilli at second picking when FYM was applied @ 25 t h-1.

Application of FYM @ 20 t ha-1 along with 100 kg phosphorus increased the

yield of French bean (76.5 q ha-1) over control (31.3 q ha-1) (Jastoria et al.,

1998). Reddy (1999) reported that application of 20 t compost ha -1 was

sufficient to realize the high TSS (Brix), acidity (0.84 %) and ascorbic acid

(14.3 mg 100 g-1 juice) in tomato. The highest fruit yield (15.0 t ha -1) was

reported with the 30 t compost ha -1.

The highest application rate of FYM (30 t h-1) along with bio fertilizers,

Azospirillum, Phosphobacteria and VAM) to cucumbers resulted in highest vine

length (330 cm) and fruit yield per vine (2053 g) (Nirmala and Vadivel, 1999).

In potato, Sharma and Pushpendra Singh (1998) reported that application of

FYM @ 30 t ha -1 increased the number of tubers by 17 % and weight of tubers

by 59 % over control. Similar reports were also given by Thind and Dan (2002).

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2.2. Effect of Poultry manures

2.2.1. Nutritive importance of poultry manure

Poultry manure contains all the essential plant nutrients such as N, P, K,

Mg, S, B, Zn, cu, Mn, Fe, etc. which is necessary for increasing the yield and

quality of field crops. Hence poultry manure has been considered as a

concentrated source of N and P (Sims and Wolf, 1994). It contains N (304 to 4.3

%), P (1.9 to 2.2 %), K (2.0 to 2.4 %), Ca (2.3 to 8.0 %), S (0.5 to 1.0 %), uric

acid (0.9 to 2.6 %) and NH4-N (0. to 1.5 %). Poultry manure is alkaline in

nature (pH 7.5 to 8.5 %) and immediately raised the pH of loams from 6.5 to 7.5

on application. Excess poultry manure causes toxicity which results in stunted

root growth and burnt leaf tissue margin. Toxicity was due to excess soluble

salts especially potassium, NO2-N and NH3.

2.2.2. Effect of poultry manures on growth and yield of vegetables

Application of 80 kg nitrogen through poultry manure along with 80 kg

nitrogen through ammonium sulphate to potato resulted in maximum plant

height (33.15 cm), number of shoots per plant (4.66), number of leaves per plant

(48.40), fresh weight of tubers (131.83g), dry matter of tuber (Singh et al.,

1973).

Poultry manure and FYM applied plots showed higher amount of

oleoresin compared with other synthetic fertilizer, whereas the crude protein

was highest with the application of poultry manure and pig manure (Aoi et al.,

1988). Oikeh and Asieghu (1993) conducted an experiment with different rates

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of poultry manure to tomato and found that application of 10 t ha-1 was superior,

which recorded a fruit yield of 47 t ha-1. The application of chicken manure at

two tonnes per hectare and chemical fertilizers resulted in maximum yield of

french bean (24.9t ha-1) (Guu jimwen et al., 1994)

Cling Fang et al. (1994) reported that the plant height, fruit number and

fruit yield were significantly higher with the organic manure applied plot than

chemical fertilizers. Tomato yield was enhanced by addition of broiler litter at

20.1 and 40 m t ha-1. Broiler litter treatments resulted to increase tomato yield to

about 20 % and fruits were matured earlier than those produced using increased

commercial fertilizer (Brown et al., 1995).

Guu Jimwen et al. (1997) found that application of chicken manure

2 t ha-1 and chemical fertilizers resulted in maximum yield of french bean

(24.9 t ha-1). There was significant effect of organic manure on the uptake of

nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium by the leaves. In brinjal, highest plant

height (75.15cm), number of fruits (13.07), weight of fruit per plant (1224.95 g)

and yield (51.03 t ha-1) were recorded in the plants receiving 50 kg nitrogen as

urea and poultry manure when compared to urea alone (Jose et al., 1998).

Poultry manure application has favourably resulted in obtaining higher

yield of soybean (1.65 t ha-1) over FYM. The increase in yield was 45 and 30 %

over FYM and urban compost respectively. Further, the application of poultry

manure @ 10 t ha-1 was found to be optimum to increase the soybean yield at

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indore as compared to FYM and urban waste (Ramesh et al., 1998). The

possibility of achieving a reasonably good yield was by basal application of dry

cow dung, top dressing with poultry manure and drenching cow dung slurry at

fortnightly interval in bitter gourd. (Rekha and Gopalakrishnan, 2001).

Combined effect of poultry manure and solarisation increased the mean

of maximum soil temperature by 41.20 C and 40.90 C respectively at 15 cm soil

depth in the second year (Kaskavali, 2009), whereas combined effect of chicken

manure and solarisation increased the maximum temperature and yield at 15 cm

at soil depth. The application of FYM @ 20 t ha-1 recorded the highest number

of fruits plant-1, fruit weigh, TSS and yield (Prem Sekhar and Rajashree, 2009).

2.3. Effect of Coir pith compost

The largest by products of coconut is coconut husk from which coir fiber

is extracted. This extraction process generates a large quantity of dusty material

called coir dust or coir pith. The quantity of coir waste is about 7.5

million tonnes from coir industries in India and in Tamil Nadu around 5 lakh

tons of coir dust was obtained.

2.3.1. Composition of Coir pith compost

It contains lignin 4.8 %, cellulose 10.10 %, carbon 24.00 %, nitrogen

41.24 %, phosphorous 20.06 %, potassium 1.20 %, calcium 0.50 %, magnesium

0.48 % and manganese 25 % with C: N ratio of 24: 1.

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2.3.2. Effect of Coir pith on growth and yield of vegetables

Recycling of organic wastes particularly with high C:N ratio materials as

coir pith helps in the maintenance of soil organic matter, improve soil physical

properties (Rajasekaran and Palaniswany, 1989). Ahemed (1993) recorded

maximum plant height at 15 t ha-1 at 65, 100, 130 DAS. However, lowest plant

height was recorded in control.

Ranganathan and Raniperumal (1995) reported that in the integration of

composted coir pith with micro food registered a significant increase in dry

matter yield over the others. Ahmed (1993) reported that enriched coir pith

manure @ 15 t ha -1 recorded the maximum plant height but the yield obtained

was on par with 10 t ha -1in tomato.

The increase in the yield of red and green chillies and dry matter was

recorded with the application of nitrogen through FYM (75 kg N ha-1) and urea

(75 kg N ha-1). Application of NPK combined with zinc sulphate (50 kg N ha-1),

Borax (10 kg N ha-1) and composted coir pith (5 t ha-1) recorded highest fruit

yield of 1487.0 g per plot as against 444.7 g per plot in control

(Balasubramanian et al., 1998).

The application of composted coir pith @ 50 kg plant-1 year along with

50 % of recommended dose NPK as chemical fertilizers is optimum for getting

maximum nut yield in coconut with substantial improvement in soil fertility

(Venkitasamy, 2003). Combined application of FYM and coir pith compost

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along with vegetable waste recorded better performance than the individual

application (Ezhil Kavitha et al., 2006). On the whole, use of coir pith compost

@ 5 t ha-1 together with N and K nutrition at higher rates (80 or 120 kg ha-1) and

a constant dose of P at 60 kg ha-1 favoured dry matter production and the other

indicies, eventually resulted in the higher white yam production under

intercropping (Suja, 2008).

2.4. Effect of Vermiwash

2.4.1. Effect of Vermiwash on growth and yield of vegetables

Vermiwash has been utilized for the potential application in sustainable

development in agriculture, biotechnology with respect to its origin, cost

effectiveness, easily availability, time saving, reproducibility, reliability and

eco-friendliness (Zambare et al., 2008). Vermiwash was obtained by culturing

earthworms (Eudrilus eugeniae Kinberg.) on organic substrates (65 % pre-

composted crop wastes and 35 % animal manure) in equipment specially

fabricated as described by Giraddi (2001). Vermiwash is a liquid collected after

the passage of water through a column of warm activation and are applied to

enhance crop growth. It is an excellent source of organic nutrient, which can

substitute chemical fertilizers (Ismail, 1997). Bucker field et al. (1999) reported

that weekly applications of vermiwash increased radish yield by 7.3%.

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Vermiwash is a liquid formulation which is more efficient in the nutrient

uptake in cabbage & cauliflower by the way it may replace chemical fertilizers

(Mosselli et al., 1999). In bhendi, the highest shoot length was recorded with

vermicompost application along with microbial fertilizers (Lalitha et al., 2000).

Uma Maheswari (2002) found that among the different treatment combinations,

foliar application of vermiwash at 1:5 dilutions showed better performance for

days to 50 % flowering and ascorbic acid content in chillies.

Karuppiah et al. (2002) reported that application of vermicompost @ 5 t

ha-1 along with vermiwash spray at fortnight intervals favourably increased the

number of productive flowers and yield of brinjal. Sajitha (2005) reported that

application of vermicompost @ 12.5 t ha-1 along with VAM and vermiwash

favourably increased the growth and yield attributes of garden bean. The

application of cotton seed cake (25 %) and poultry manure (75 %) + vermiwash

+ package significantly increased the yield, improved the chemical properties of

soil, increased the nutrient availability and there by lead to increased nutrient

uptake by cucumber (Mali et al., 2003).

Thangavel (2003) observed that both growth and yield of paddy increased

with the application of vermiwash and vermicast extracts. The organic

substance present in panchakavya and vermiwash might have produced a

positive effect on fruit length, fruit girth, weight per fruit, number of fruits per

plant and fruit set (Somasundaram et al., 2003). Foliar spray of vermiwash

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enhanced the growth parameters (plant height, number of laterals, number of

leaves and leaf area) and yield parameters (number of days to flowering,

number of flowers per plant and flower weight) (Sivasubramanian and Ganesh

kumar, 2004). Application of vermicompost and vermiwash derived from

vegetable waste along with VAM registered the host values for growth and

yield of vegetable cowpea (Venkateswara Prasad et al., 2006)

Application of 75 % and 100 % RDF, FYM and vermiwash recorded

higher neck and bulb diameter, dry matter accumulation in leaf and bulb leading

to higher yield (Mamatha et al., 2008). Application of 100 % RDF +

Panchakavya spray @ 2 % or 100 % RDF + vermiwash spray (2 %) to okra

resulted in higher yield attributing characters and quality of fruits. (Vennila and

Jayanthi, 2008).

2.5. Effect of Panchakavya

In 1950, James F. Martin of USA made liquid catalyst (Living water)

from mulching cow, using sea water and yeast. It was capable of greening

degraded land (Vivekanandan et al., 1998). While preparing panchakavya, the

clockwise and anticlockwise stirring of panchakavya stock solution creates a

depression, which facilitates a cosmic energy is allowed through a living system

which stimulates the imbalance in physical, chemical and biological process

along with physiological aspect. The basic elements for the growth are

harmonized by energy which refreshes the growth process (Sundararama et al.,

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2001). Panchakavya is a combination of five products obtained from the cow,

which is used in traditional medicine extensively used. They are cow dung,

cow’s urine, cow’s milk, cow’s curd and ghee. Scientists are rediscovering the

value of unique combination of the five products of the cow. Panchakavya is a

single organic input, which can act as a growth promoter and immunity booster.

It has a significant role in providing resistance to pests and diseases and in

increasing the overall yield.

2.5.1. Effect of Panchakavya on growth and yield of vegetables

Natarajan (2000) revealed that among the plant growth stimulants defined

in Vrikshayurveda, panchakavya was found to be the best in enhancing

efficiency of crop plants and the quality of fruits and vegetables. Foliar spray of

panchakavya on chilli produced dark green colured leaves and new growth with

in 10 days of application (Subashini Sridhar et al., 2000). Higher yield was

obtained in lemon when panchakavya at 3 per cent was sprayed at vegetative and

flowering stage (Natarajan, 2000).

(Beaulah, 2001) noticed a higher plant height with organic manure

treatment which comprising poultry manure + Panchakavya in moringa. The dry

matter production was also found to be the highest in the same treatment

combinations. Application of Calcium acetate @ 0.5 % + panchakavya @ 5 %

advanced the flowering by 45.60 days and 53.31 days in Cv. Edward and Red

Rose respectively (Thamaraiselvi, 2001).

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Jayashankar et al. (2002) reported that foliar spray of panchakavya @ 3

% on field bean substantially increased the flowering and fruiting after a week

period. The quality parameters viz., crude fibre, protein, ascorbic acid, carotene

content and shelf life were also higher under organic manure applied with

panchakavya spray in annual moringa (Beaulah et al., 2002). The Rural

Community Auction Centre at Kodumudi, Tamil Nadu conducted an

experiment by adding fifteen materials to normal panchakavya and reported that

tender coconut water, sugarcane effluent and banana fruits added potency to

panchakavya by enriching its organic property (Natarajan, 2000). Panchakavya

acts both as a fertilizer (75 %) and pesticide (25 %) (Paramasivan, 2003).

Arjunan (2005) reported that combined application of FYM @ 12.5 t ha -1

+ panchakavya @ 3 % was found to be optimum for enhancing the growth,

yield and quality of tomato. The combined application of 3.0 % panchakavya +

100 % recommended dose of inorganic NPK fertilizers improved the growth,

yield and yield attributig characters of white onion. While comparing the

organic versus inorganic farming, it was found that organic farming treatment (3

% panchagavya + 50% FYM+ 50 % poultry manure) recorded higher bulb yield

in crops next to inorganic treatment (Sankar et al., 2009). The highest flower

yield was recorded in recommended dose of fertilizer followed by combined

spraying of panchakavya @ 3 % + Salicylic acid @ 100 ppm + nitrobenzene @

150 ppm (Saraswathi and Vadivel, 2009). Application of 75 % of the required

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amount of nutrients in the form of vermicompost @ 5.60 t ha -1, groundnut cake

@ 0.38 t ha-1 with biofertilizers @ 10 kg ha-1 along with panchakavya spray @ 3

% for four times from 30 days transplanting improve growth attributes, yield

and dry fruit yield in hot pepper (Uma Maheswari, 2009)

2.6. Effect of Humic acid

2.6.1. Use of Humic acid in Agriculture

Recent scientific investigation revealed that the possibility of humic acids

extracted from lignite could be utilized for improving the organic carbon

content of the soils. Humic acid are natural, eco-friendly organic products

which contains no external chemical additives and is advisable to grow plants

organically, using humic acid. Applications of humic acid are reported to

increase the permeability of the plant membranes resulting in higher metabolic

activity and enzyme activity. Humic acids are essential for optimum plant

growth. They play a major role in modifying physical and mechanical properties

of the soil such as structure, colour, consistency, water holding capacity etc.

Humic acid build up the organic matter which is important for microbial growth

in the soil, improving soil tilth, which in turn improve the plant growth. The

uptake of the humic acid through the roots and their transformation in plants

and possibly due to their influence on metabolism has been demonstrated by

Stevenson (1994). Its chemical function is manifested by its higher cation

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exchange capacity. Humic acid provides carbon as energy source to nitrogen

fixing bacteria and thus proves its function (Virgine, 2003).

Humic acid substance originates from chemical and biological

degradation of plant and animal residues and from activities of microorganisms

(Schnitzer, 1991). Coal is also found to produce humus matter on degradation.

Peat and lignite are reported to have higher humus content of 50-60 %. It is

better to grow plants organically using active humic acids rather than using

harsh chemicals as synthetic humic substances (Sumukh Dias, 2001).

2.6.2. Effect of Humic acid on growth and yield of vegetables

Since the literature on yield of crops as influenced by humic acid is less,

the effects of organic sources in addition to humic acid on yield of vegetable

crops are reported here under.

The earlier appearance of roots, extreme abundance and larger surface

area of roots are all of prime importance in the formation of a healthy plant.

Earlier and more profuse rooting of crops by the use of humic substance may

bring about benefits associated with an earlier harvest.

Andreu-Sanchez et al. (1991) demonstrated that humic substances

increased root length and number of root hairs in tomato. Singhvi (1991)

recorded increased root length in radish by addition of humic acid @ 10-25

mg 1-1 of nutrient solution. In an experiment conducted by Piccolo et al. (1993)

to study the effect of humic acid on seedling growth of tomato grown in

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petridishes stated that the seedling fresh weight of tomato increased with

increasing concentration of humic acid up to 5000 mg 1-1.

David et al. (1994) reported that addition of humic acid @ 12801 kg ha-1

produced highly branched tomato roots resulted in efficient nutrient acquisition.

Adani et al. (1998) observed the beneficial effect of humic acid on tomato plant

when applied @ 50 mg 1-1. In tomato, the fresh weight and dry weight of tomato

shoots increased with each successive increase in humic acid rates (David et al.,

1994).

Vande-Vender and Furter (1995) documented the foliar spray of sodium

humate (oxicol) at 0.5, 500 or 1000 mg 1-1applied twice a week showed

significant results in top and root growth of tomato cv. Romer and beetroot cv.

Detroil Dark red. Lotteredo et al. (1997) reported that application of 200 mg lit-1

of humic acid to tomato enhanced the dry matter content of roots. Padem and

Ocal (1997) reported a significant increase in fruit weight and ascorbic acid

content of tomato due to increased levels of humic acid from 200 to 300 ppm.

Adani et al. (1998) studied the effect of humic acid from leonordite on

tomato plant growth and observed 9 % increase in shoot growth than the

control. Dursun et al. (1999) foundd that application of humic acid at different

levels (50, 100, 150 ml l-1) applied to a peat medium after transplanting of

seedlings of tomato increased the stem and root growth.

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Humic acid applied in the form of sodium humate improved the growth

of tomato (Bohme and Papadopoulos, 1999). The results of a study conducted

by Padem et al. (1999) reported that application of humic acid significantly

improved the fruit penetration value and ascorbic acid content of tomato fruit.

Dursun et al. (1999) assessed various levels of humic acid on seedling growth

of tomato and stated that increased leaf and stem growth were obtained with

humic acid @ 50 and 100 ml-1.

Hartwigson and Evans (2000) observed that cucumber seedlings drenched

with 2500 and 5000 ppm humic acid produced higher root fresh weight.

Medeiros et al. (2001) reported that fertigation with earthworm humus resulted

in greater number of leaves, higher dry and fresh weight of above ground parts

in lettuce compared with plants irrigated with water alone.

Peng Zheng Ping et al. (2001) indicated that humic acid enhanced the

chlorophyll content of Chinese cabbage and enriched the blade into thick glossy

dark green and fresh which improved the commodity value. Yu Ping and Able

(2001) found that humic acid application significantly reduced the water loss

and enhanced the shelf life of broccoli. Bharanikkarasi (2001) noticed that

maximum yields were consistently maintained with humic acid application @

0.45 g pot-1 than the foliar spray in tomato. Virgine Tenshia (2003) carried out

an experiment to study the effect of lignite humic acid on soil fertility, growth,

yield and quality of tomato. Results indicated that dry matter production, LAI,

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chlorophyll content, fruit set percentage, yield, uptake of nutrients, TSS, titrable

acidity, ascorbic acid, lycopene and pectin were highest in soil application of

humic acid @ 20 kg ha -1.

Humic acid applied as potassium humate with and without NPK

fertilizers on growth, yield and nutrients on amarunthus. The results showed

that application of 10 kg ha-1 of humic acid as potassium humate along with 75

% recommended NPK was found to influence the production of green matter

significantly besides recording high nutrient content (Sathiyabama and

Selvakumari, 2004).

Application of humic acid @ 20 t ha-1 increased available NPK, organic

carbon and CEC of the soil to 252, 15.5 and 640 kg ha -1 ,0.779 % and 33.7cmol

(p+) kg-1 from 226, 12.5 and 593 kg ha-1,0.709 and and 26.7 mol (p+)kg-1

respectively (Sathiyabama and Selvakumari, 2005). Dhanasekeran and

Bhuvaneswari (2005) reported that combined application of humic acid with

NAA recorded the highest yield and best quality in tomato. Karuppaiah and

Manivannan (2005) reported that combination of humic acid (30 kg ha-1),

pressmud (18.75 ha-1) and NPK (60:45:45 kg ha-1) was found to be the superior

combination in exhibiting higher yield in cucumber (11.7 t ha-1).

Chrisha and Dong (2006) investigated that the nature and properties of

humic fraction of organic residues like FYM, poultry manure, green leaf

manure and rice straw. The highest N, P and S uptake by pod and stalk and total

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uptake were found under soil application of humic acid @ 20 kg ha -1 and it was

remain at par with soil application of humic acid @ 20 and 10 kg ha-1 (Butani et

al., 2008).

2.7. Effect of inorganic fertilizers on growth and yield of vegetables

In muskmelon, application of N at 250 kg ha-1 enhanced the development

of perfect flowers and fruit set (Brantley and Warren, 1960). Rekhi et al. (1968)

conducted an experiment with higher levels of N (120 and 80 kg ha -1) and

reported that higher levels of N produced large number of perfect flowers than

staminate flowers in muskmelon. Parikh and Chandra (1969) reported that

cucumber produced maximum number of female flower respectively when N

was applied at 80 kg ha-1.

In sandy loam soils application of 115 kg N, 44 kg each of P and K ha-1

increased the female flowers in muskmelon as reported by Jassal et al. (1970).

The optimum dose of inorganic fertilizers for snake gourd was 40:30:30 kg ha-1

respectively, Sreenivasan and Chockalingam (1973). Sundarrajan and

Muthukrishnan (1975) obtained higher yield in CO 2 pumpkin by the

application of 40: 40: 80 kg NPK ha-1.

In watermelon, application of 100 kg N, 30 kg P and 100 kg

K ha-1 resulted in maximum yield (25.9 t ha-1) Bhosale et al. (1977).

A combination of 75, 100 and 150 kg of NPK ha-1 have resulted in the highest

yield of 37.366 kg ha-1 in watermelon (Mangal et al., 1977). Application of N

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and P increased the plant height, earliness index, fruit size, fruit yield plant-1 and

fruit yield ha-1. Tomato yield (3.025 kg plant -1) was increased with N and P

rates (60 and 80 kg ha-1 respectively) (Sharma et al., 1978). Xu and Cheng

(1989) recommended that the application of 60 kg N, 21 kg P and 60 kg K ha -1

for obtaining higher yield (42 to 100 kg ha-1) and better quality of fruits

(10.9 B) in watermelon.

Karachi et al. (1977) obtained a yield of 3.1 amd 4.2 t ha-1 in honey dew

melon from plots receiving ammonium sulphate or urea at 50 and 100 kg-1

respectively. Rajendran (1981) suggested that the response to nitrogen was

quadratic in the case of pumpkin and economic levels were worked out to be 71

kg N ha-1 and 50 kg P2O5 ha-1. The highest number of fruits per plant, fruit

weight per vine and fruit quality in muskmelon was reported from plots that

received nitrogen @ 50 kg ha-1 and P2O5 @ 37.5 kg ha-1 (Randhawa et al.,

1981).

Split application of 120 kg N ha-1with 25 tonnes of FYM ha-1 recorded the

highest yield of dry chilli pods (33.82 q ha-1) followed by the fertilizer dose of

80:35:35 kg NPK ha-1(31.0 q ha-1) (Subbiah et al., 1982). A study conducted by

Singh et al. (1983) obtained maximum number of fruits and maximum diameter

of fruits in muskmelon at 75 kg N ha-1 and 30 kg P2O5 ha-1. Srinivas and Doijode

(1984) reported a significant increase in the number of perfect flowers with 50

kg N ha-1 in muskmelon.

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Vishnu Shukla and Prabhakar (1985) reported that significant yield

(385.37 q ha-1) increase was obtained with 180 kg N, 100 kg P2O5 and K2o ha-1

application when compared to 1/3 dose of fertilizer in bottle gourd. In water

melon, application of NP and K at 150:100:150 kg ha-1 produced maximum

number of leaves per vine. Omini and Hossain (1987) reported that potassium

containing nutrient treatments in ridge gourd reduced the node number of first

staminate inflorescence but did not change the node number of pistil flower thus

increasing staminate flowering.

Different levels of NPK on onion significantly increased the plant height

(69.67 cm), number of leaves (69.67), bulb diameter (3.38 cm) and yield were

recorded with the application of 150 kg N, 150 kg P and 100 kg K (Patil et al.,

1983). Similar results were also observed with garlic.Whereas the bulb yield

was significantly increased with the application of 150 kg N, 150kg P, 250 kg K

ha-1 (Pal and Pandey, 1986).

Singh and Chonkar (1986) observed maximum vine length (240.10 cm)

and number of branches (16.92) with the application of NPK at 100: 60: 60 kg

ha-1 respectively when compared to control (151.57 cm and 11.15 cm

respectively) in muskmelon. Singh and Chonkar (1986) made a trail with

muskmelon with the application of 100 kg N, 60 kg P and 50 kg K ha-1 and

observed relative growth, higher fruit weight and fruit yield.

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Bhella and Wilcox (1986) also observed that increasing N level from 67

to 100 kg ha-1 resulted in marked promotion of growth in muskmelon.

Cszizinsky et al. (1987) stated that early yield was observed in vines were

noticed with 50 per cent of the recommended N at sowing and 50 per cent at

mid-growth. They also observed that late season yields were high in the

treatment combination of 252 kg N, 40 kg P and 209 kg K ha-1 in muskmelon.

Maurya (1987) reported that the highest number of female flowers,

lowest number of male flowers and narrowed sex ratio were obtained with 80

kg N ha-1 as soil application in cucumber cv. Martin. In a study conducted by

Lingaiah et al. (1988) reported that nitrogen at 80 kg ha-1, P2O5 at 30 kg ha-1 and

K2o at zero level recorded the highest yield in bitter gourd.

A study conducted by Arora and Satish (1989) reported that application

of N and P each at 75 and 40 kg ha-1 respectively resulted in maximum vine

length, number of male flowers during summer. A combination of 50 kg N and

25 kg P ha-1 maximized the number of female flowers in summer and

maximized the sex ratio in both summer and rainy season. In rainy season, a

combination of 25 kg N and 40 kg P ha-1 resulted in early female flower

appearance and produced maximum number of female flowers in sponge gourd

A study conducted by Haris (1989) on the response of snake gourd for

nitrogen and reported that 90 kg ha-1 and an optimum level could not be arrived

in the case of P2O5 and K2o and also there was no significant effect on yield

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beyond the lower level tried. In Sponge gourd, Arora and Siyag (1989) observed

that application of 75:40:0 kg NPK ha-1 had resulted maximum length and

number of male flower during summer season.

The highest plant height, more number of branches and more number of

flowers per plant and higher yield components like fruit length, girth, fruit

weight per plant and yield per hectare were recorded with the highest level of N,

K (87.5,52.5 kg ha-1) (Shibhilamary and Balakrishnan, 1990). A study

conducted by Hariprakash Rao and Srinivas (1990) reported that increased

levels of N up to 100 kg ha-1 significantly increased the fruit yield in

muskmelon. Yadav et al. (2003) obtained highest plant height, number of leaves

per plant, fresh weight and dry weight of leaves, polar diameter of bulb, fresh

weight of bulb and yield of bulb in onion with the application of nitrogen and

potassium at 150 kg each.

Csermi et al. (1990) reported that N application had beneficial effect on

fruit yield and was better utilized in alluvial and Chernozen soils than in sandy

soils. They also observed that the highest numbers of fruits were obtained when

NPK was given at 120: 90: 180 kg NPK ha-1 in cucumber. In cucumber, yield

and yield components could be increased by increasing the combination of NPK

from 5 per cent to 300 per cent.

Al-Sahaf and Al-Khafagi (1990) reported that the application of mixed

fertilizers of 25 kg N, 7.6 kg P and 25.3 kg K 30 kg ha -1 had a significant

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influence on fruit weight and total N and K accumulation in cucumber. In an

experiment tomato plants supplied with N at 100, 200 kg ha-1, P2O5 at 75 or 150

kg ha-1 , K2O at 75 or 150 kg ha-1 and half fermented FYM at 20.40 or 60 t ha-1,

the best quality for processing tomatoes was obtained with N, P and K dose of

300, 150, and 75 kg ha-1respectively + 20 t FYM ha-1 (Lacatus et al., 1994).

In garlic, Abbas et al (1994) observed highest plant height (27.58 cm),

maximum bulb size, number of cloves (29.83) and yield (9.73 ha-1) with the

application of optimum dose of NPK (100:50:60 kg ha-1). Mallanagouda et al.

(1995) recorded maximum growth, dry matter accumulation (9.30 %), bulb

diameter (3.14%) and yield (1120.03 kg ha-1) in garlic with the application of

recommended dose of fertilizer (125:62.5:62.5 kg NPK ha-1) and farmyard

manure (5 t ha-1).

Application of recommended dose of fertilizer (155:50:125 kg NPK ha-1)

with FYM (5 t ha-1) recorded maximum vegetative growth, dry matter

accumulation (6.80 kg plant-1), bulb diameter (4.47 cm) and yield (4698.38 kg

ha-1) in onion (Mallanagouda et al., 1995). He also observed that application of

recommended dose of fertilizer (125: 62.5: 62.5 NPK ha-1) with FYM (500 kg

ha-1) recorded maximum nutrient uptake (111.0:14.21:70.20 NPK ha-1) in

Garlic.

Singh et al. (1995) reported that combinations of 100 kg N ha-1with 60 kg

P kg-1and 120cm and a spacing of significantly influenced the fruit set

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percentage and total solids of fruit in muskmelon. Arora et al. (1996) observed

that maximum vine length, number of branches per plant, increased internodal

length and more number of leaves per vine were recorded when N was applied

at 90 kg kg-1 in pumpkin.

Mahapatra et al. (1996) reported that increased level of N from 60 to 150

kg ha-1had significantly increased the fruit size, fruit weight, number of fruits

per plant and yield of fruits in pointed gourd. In Gherkin, Premalakshmi et al.

(1996) reported that application of 150 kg N, 100 kg P2O5 and 100 kg K2o ha-1

recorded increased vine length, number of branches, higher number of pistillate

flowers per vine when compared to vines those received NPK at 50: 50: 50 kg

ha-1 without N and K.

Janakiraman (1996) reported that application of N at 120 kg ha-1

produced the maximum number of male and female flowers (39.23 and 88.33)

per vine whereas maximum dry matter production of 7.79 t ha -1, increased

number of branches, internodal length and leaf area when N was applied at 120

kg ha-1 along with 200 ppm ethrel in gherkin. In gherkin, Srinivasa Reddy

(1997) reported that application of 10 kg N, 90 kg P and 50 kg K ha -1 produced

maximum vine length, number of branches per vine, leaf area and number of

fruits per vine. Selvakumar (1998) reported that application of 105 kg N ha-1

showed narrow sex ratio of 3.72 and produced the maximum yield per vine at

1079.67 g in cucumber.

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Use of NPK fertilizers (187:49:75 kg ha-1) with 20 tonnes of FYM in

onion resulted in significant improvement in nutrient uptake and available NPK

status of the soil (Sharma et al., 2003). The higher percent of seed germination

was observed at higher dose of fertilizer (N 150 + P 120 + K 120) in both the

years which is followed by NPK @ 125:120:120 kg ha-1(Lal, 2003). In tomato,

the higher fruit yield, TSS and better post harvest nutrients status were

associated with the application of 80:40:80 NPK kg ha-1 (Duraisami and Mani,

2003).

Prasannakumar et al. (2004) reported that application of 50:50:60 kg

NPK kg ha-1 found to be the optimum fertilizer dose for ridgegourd which

significntly increased number of fruits per vine, fruit weight, fruit length, fruit

girth, fruit yield per vine and fruit yield kg ha-1. In Snakegourd, Jayaraman

(2005) reported that combined application of FYM @ 25 t ha-1 along with 100

% recommended dose of inorganic fertilizers produced highest vine length.

Choundhary and Ataal chandra (2006) reported that application of

vermicompost @ 6 t ha-1 along with RDF of NPK significantly increased fruit

yield , fruit weight (9.6 g), fruit length (9.61 cm), fruit diameter (1.36 cm) and

fruit yield (99.1 q ha-1) in Okra.

Brinjal requires heavy manuring for putting up maximum plant growth

and yield. It requires 3 to 3.5 kg N, 0.2 to 0.3 kg P, 2.5 to 3.5 kg K ha -1. The

response to applied nutrients varies from 75 to 300 kg N, 0 to 224 P ha-1, 0 to 80

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kg K ha-1 (Sat Pal Sharma and Brar, 2008). In case of okra, low level of

nitrogen application (30 kg N ha−1) with low but daily watering had significantly

increase the yield (1,365 g plot−1) than from higher level of nitrogen application

(Shakya et al., 2009)

2.8. Effect of combined application of organic and inorganic fertilizers on

growth and yield of vegetables

Integrated nutrient management through inorganic and organic sources

resulted in multi-benefits in addition to giving maximum and stable yields with

better quality of vegetable crops such as Pea, Cauliflower, Cabbage, Onion,

Radish, Tomato and Cucumber (Jaggi, 2007). For successful crop of bitter

gourd, Katyal (1977) suggested that combined application of 50 t ha-1 of FYM,

100 kg ha-1 of ammonium sulphate and vermicompost along with recommended

inorganic fertilizers increased the yield by 21.1 per cent and 19 per cent.

Application of 10 t of FYM, 10 kg N, 65 kg P and 40 kg K ha-1 recorded the

highest yield in watermelon (Belik and Kascheev, 1974). Kurumottical (1982)

revealed that application of nitrogen and phosphorus in combination with

organic manure (FYM) had more nitrogenous and phosphorus as compared to

inorganic fertilizers alone.

A trial conducted by Mesina (1986) in Philippines revealed that

application of 10 t ha-1 of cattle dung along with 120 kg N ha-1 as chemical

fertilizers increased the number of fruits per plant in bitter gourd. The

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application of 50 % recommended dose + FYM applied to potato showed

increased yield as compared to plants receiving fertilizer alone (Chatterjee et

al., 1987). Combination of organic manures with inorganic fertilizers had a

moderating effect on soil reaction (Nambiar and Abrol, 1989). However,

Spirescu (1986) recorded the highest yield of 42.4 t ha-1 with the combination of

30 t FYM along with NPK at 50: 100: 100 kg ha-1 respectively in watermelon

cv. Charleston.

Meena Nair and Peter (1990) found that the combination of fertilizers

containing N at 125 or 175 kg ha-1 with FYM 15 t ha-1 significantly increased

the yield as compared to organic or inorganic fertilizers applied alone. Singh

and Maurya (1992) reported that application of 120 kg N and 60 kg P2O5 ha-1

significantly increased yield (353.8 q ha-1) in tomato. The combined application

of both FYM and pressmud along with 100 % recommended dose of NPK

resulted in a maximum number of leaves and enhanced leaf area.

(Nandhakumar, 1995).

The number and weight of unmarketable fruits recorded after 10 days of

storage increased with increasing levels of FYM and fertilizers. Application of

the recommended dose of NPK + FYM improved the fruit yield (2099.8 kg ha -1)

and dry yield (3.87 q ha-1) in chilli (Mallegouda et al., 1995). Shama et al.

(1995) reported that days to 50 per cent flowering was advanced in the

treatment combination of 240 kg N and 60 kg P2O5 ha-1 in chilli.

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35

The number of clusters, flowers and fruits per plant and fruit setting

percentage were increased significantly with the application of N and P each at

80 kg ha-1 in tomato (Pandey et al., 1996). In gherkin, Premalakshmi et al.

(1996) reported that the ascorbic acid content of the fruits were higher due to

the application of organic manure alone (FYM 25 ha-1 + biofertilizers). Mina

(1986) reported that application of poultry manure alone and in combination

with 14: 14: 14 NPK fertilizer mixture at respective rates significantly increased

the yield of muskmelon.

Nainar and Pappiah (1997) reported that the treatment received the

recommended dose of 200: 100: 50 kg NPK ha-1 in tomato showed a favourable

effect on number of fruiting clusters and number of fruits per cluster as

compared to control. The combination of organic fertilizer with biofertilizers

(Azospirillum + Phosphobacteria) yielded the best results in terms of increased

plant height, branches per plant, mean fruit weight and number of fruits per

plant (Kumaran et al., 1998).

In tomato, Renuka and Ravishankar (1998) found that application of

biogas slurry (or) vermicompost along with FYM was superior to obtain large

size fruits. In bitter gourd, Rekha and Gopalakrishnan (1999) reported that

application of organic manure alone recorded minimum vine length and

maximum number of branches while with addition of inorganic fertilizers @ 70:

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25:50 kg NPK ha-1 recorded maximum vine length and minimum number of

branches and flowering.

Application of chemical fertilizers in the absence of FYM resulted in the

formation of vegetative organs and subsequently the reproductive organs

resulted in lower flower production on cucumber (Cerna, 1980). Nirmala and

Vadivel (1999) found that combined application of biofertilizers and organic

manure (FYM) in cucumber had beneficial effect on growth, reproductive

behaviour and yield of marketable produce.

Hossain and Mohanty (1999) stated that application of 90 kg N and 40 kg

K ha-1 respectively increased the plant height, number of branches, number of

flowers and fruits in tomato cv. Punjab Chuhara. Singh (2000) observed the

highest plant height (73.3 cm) with 180 kg N ha-1 as against the least plant

height (60.10 cm) recorded at 60 kg N ha-1 in tomato. Youssef et al. (2001)

reported that an application of 25 per cent organic manure + 75 per cent

chemical fertilizers were found to increase the total yield per plant significantly

when compared to other treatments.

Arya et al. (2000) reported that marketable fruit yield (99.8 q ha -1) and

seed yield (181.8 kg ha-1) in brinjal were the highest with 100: 100: 50 kg NPK

ha-1. The plant height was increased with 100 kg N ha -1 which was significantly

superior over 50 kg N ha-1 in brinjal whereas application of 50 kg P2O5 ha-1 had

recorded significant increase in stem diameter over control (Ingle et al., 2000).

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Among the various levels of inorganic fertilizers, application of 125 %

RDF produced taller plants in okra. This might accelerate the synthesis of

chlorophyll and aminoacids which are associated with major photosynthetic

process of plants (Gouda et al., 2001). Better yield can be taken by substitution

of inorganic fertilizers with organic manures and crop residue to some extent

(Duraisami et al., 2001). Application of FYM @ 25 t ha-1 in conjunction with 75

% of RDF to potato and rice crop in the sequence was more renumurative and

the maximum net production (1.33) than the application of fertilizers in

inorganic form even at higher dose in soyabean (Biswas et al., 2002).

The integrated crop management in brinjal revealed that application of

FYM + pressmud @ 12.5 t ha-1 each along with 100 percent of the

recommended inorganic fertilizers (100:50:50) kg NPK ha-1 + biofertilizer @ 2

kg ha-1 increased plant height, number of primary branches, number of leaves

and leaf area (Anburani and Manivannan, 2002).

Highest tomato fruit yield of 194.43 q ha-1 was obtained with the

application of 20 t FYM ha-1 along with 100:50:50 kg of NPK ha-1. Moisture

loss and fruit decay during storage did not vary significantly among various

treatments. The average number of fruits was recorded significantly highest

with 20 t ha-1 of poultry manures (Raut et al., 2003). Maximum green pod yield

(10.03 t ha-1) was recorded in NPK @ 30:39.3:37.5 kg ha-1 along with 10 t FYM

which was statistically superior than rest of all the other treatments (Datt, 2003).

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Considering total yield, marketable yield and size of fruits those plants

received a basal application of 20 tonnes dry cow dung, 2.5 tonnes of poultry

manure at fortnight drenching of 2.5 tonnes of cow dung and a fertilizer dose of

70:25:52 kg NPK ha-1was found to excel all the treatments (Rekha and

Gopalakrishnan, 2004). Pradeepkumar and Sharma (2004) noticed that FYM @

10 tonnes ha-1 + 150 percent NPK (ie 90:90:45 kg ha-1 NPK) in cabbage and

FYM @ 25 tonnes ha-1 NPK + 150 percent NPK (150:112.5:82.5 ) in tomatoes

were found to be the best for obtaining increased growth, yield and available

nutrients (NPK/ha) in the crops.

Integrated nutrient management significantly increased shoot, dry matter

yield of tomato and fruit yield of okra and tomato (Singh et al., 2004).

Application of 10 tonnes farmyard manure per hectare to potato and rice along

with 75 % of recommended dose NPK was more remunerative than the

application of fertilizers in the form of inorganic fertilizers any even at high

dose. (Chettri et al., 2004). Application of FYM (10 and 20 t ha-1) significantly

increased the fruit yield and growth parameters (fruit plant-1, average fruit

weight, plant height and number of branches plant-1) over no FYM application

(Akhilesh Sharma and Sharma, 2004).

Beneficial effect of FYM in conjunction with RDF may be due to effect

of organic application in improving physical, chemical and biological properties

of soil conductive to better plant growth. (Deshmukh et al., 2005). The

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application of FYM @ 15 t ha-1 produced the highest bulb weight with the total

onion yield in three split doses of 40 kg as basal, 40 kg at 30 days and the

remaining at 45 days recorded maximum yield in onion (Dimri and Singh,

2005).

The total nutrient requirement can be managed through integrated

approach of inorganic fertilizers and organic manure use ie. 75 % of

recommended NPK through inorganic source and 25 % from FYM, without

affecting the processing grade and tuber yield, and processing quality of tomato

(Praveen Kumar, 2008). The application of 100 % RDF + 20 t FYM ha -1

significantly increased seed yield as compared to rest of the treatments. This

indicates that adoption of integration of organic and inorganic and beneficial for

higher onion seed yield (Patil et al., 2008).

The application of FYM enhanced the growth parameters such as number

of pods per plant, number of seeds per pod, weight of pods per plant highest

seed yield and stalk yield in 50 percent recommended applied through urea + 50

percent N applied through urea through FYM + PSB (Leela Narayana et al.,

2009). The integrated nutrition showed a positive input on fruit size of brinjal

(113.90 mm) There was beneficial effect on yield of brinjal (11.75 t ha-1) and

pea (6.54 t ha-1) in second and third year respectively. But considerably better

performance was observed in third rational crop of okra. (Srivastava et al.,

2009).

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2.9. Effect of organic and inorganic nutrients on plant uptake

Kurumthottical (1982) revealed that application of nitrogen and

phosphorus in combination with organics had resulted in higher content of

available nitrogen and phosphorus as compared to inorganic fertilizers alone.

Subba Rao (1989) reported that in cucumber, the different nitrogen levels

significantly increased the percentage of NPK in all the stages. Nitrogen uptake

was significantly increased by the application of higher levels of FYM + NPK

and also showed marked increase under higher levels of potassium.

2.10. Effect of organic and inorganic nutrient on post harvest soil status

Dhanorkar et al. (1994) reported that continuous use of FYM raised the

available K by 1.3 to 5.4 folds over control. Janakiraman (1996) reported a

maximum residual soil NPK of 198.00, 46.42 and 358.83 kg ha-1 respectively in

cucumber field. Soil available P2O5 content (46.42 kg ha-1) and K2o (358.83 kg

ha-1) was recorded in the nitrogen control plants in cucumber. Janakiram (1996)

reported that the maximum uptake of 161.78, 51.79, 144.42 kg NPK ha-1 was

registered when N was applied @ 120 kg ha-1 in gherkin. Selvakumar (1998)

recorded a maximum N uptake of 168.27 kg ha-1 when N was applied @ 140 kg

ha-1. He also recorded maximum P and K uptake of 47.60 and 46.21 kg ha -1

when N was applied @ 105 kg ha-1 in cucumber.

Rekhi et al. (1999) reported that apart from the supply of both macro and

micro nutrients, FYM application improves physical condition of the soil, water

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holding capacity and permeability. Application of FYM would have helped in

the plant metabolic activity through the supply of such important micronutrients

in the early vigorous growth (Anburani and Manivannan, 2002).

Application of FYM showed decreased bulk density and increase in water

holding capacity, porosity and infiltration rate, besides the electrical

conductivity of soil was also increased with level of FYM along with increase

in the organic carbon content (Patil et al., 2003). The increased number of fruit

per plant is due to solubilisation effect of plant nutrients by addition of FYM as

evinced by increased uptake of N, P, K, Ca, Mg by the crop during vegetative

stage as well as reproductive phase. (Patil et al., 2004).

Application of FYM would have increased the nutrient accumulation of

nutrients and total soluble solids in comparison to synthetic fertilizers (Sanwal

et al., 2007). The organics (FYM, vermicompost, panchakavya) have influenced

the uptake of nutrients by the crop considerably. When the organics were added

to soil, complex nitrogenous compounds slowly break down and make N supply

through the growth period of the crop. This might have attributed to more

availability and subsequent uptake by the crop, thus increasing the yield.

(Kondapa et al., 2009).

In poultry manure 60 %of the N is present as uric acid, which supply

rapidly converted to ammonical form and is easily utilized by the plant (Sharu

and Meerabai, 2001). The nitrogen uptake was also higher by application of

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42

poultry manure (55.36 kg N ha-1) as organic and application of 100 kg N ha-1

(67.87 kg N ha-1 ) as inorganic fertilizer (Sachindev, 2001).

The potential use of vermiwash as a biocide either single or mixed with

botanical pesticide could be well exploited for household vegetable cultivation

(Anon, 2002). The nutrients in vermiwash are in readily available form. It also

contains enzymes, hormones and vitamins. Besides, it is known to possess

heterotrophic bacteria, fungi, actinomycetes, it also includes nitrogen fixers and

phosphate solubilizers. It has proved to enhance the productivity, texture and

taste of fruits and vegetable (Anon, 2005)