Productivity and profitability of wheat (Triticum aestivum) as influenced by different cropping systems and nutrient sources

A field experiment was conducted during the winter (rabi) seasons of 2014–15 and 2015–16 at New Delhi, to evaluate the effects of cropping systems and nutrient sources on yield attributes, yields and economics of wheat [Triticum aestivum (L.) emend. Fiori & Paol]. Of the tested cropping systems, direct-seeded basmati rice (DSBR) (Oryza sativa L.)-wheat-mungbean [Vigna radiata (L.) R. Wilczek] system exhibited the highest values of yield attributes, viz. effective tillers, grains/spike and 1, 000-seed weight which led to the highest grain yield (4.44 t/ha) and wheat equivalent yield (WEY) (11.7 t/ha). Among the nutrient sources, application of 50% recommended dose of fertilizers (RDF) + 25% recommended dose of nitrogen (RDN) through vermicompost (VC) + bio-fertilizer resulted in the highest yield attributes, grain (4.76 t/ha) and straw (6.86 t/ha) yields and gross returns (105.07 × 10³/ha) followed by 50% RDF + 25% RDN through leaf compost (LC) + bio-fertilizer. A strong positive correlation (r² = 0.69–0.97) was also observed between yield attributes (effective tillers/m² and grains/spike) and yield of wheat. The uptake of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) in grain and straw of wheat remained statistically identical in DSBR-wheat-fallow and DSBR-wheat-mungbean systems. Application of 50% RDF + 25% RDN-VC + bio-fertilizer registered significantly the highest uptake of N, P and K in both grain and straw of wheat and found on a par with 50% RDF + 25% RDN-LC + bio-fertilizer and 100% RDF. On the basis of net returns an application of 100% RDF was found superior to all the treatments. Therefore, DSBR-wheat-mungbean cropping system in conjunction with 50% RDF + 25% RDN-VC + bio-fertilizer or 50% RDF + 25% RDN-LC + bio-fertilizer significantly improved the yield attributes, leading to higher productivity and profitability of wheat over the control.