Nutrient Management Strategies for Enhancing Productivity of Dryland Crops in Alfisols

Soils in rainfed areas are poor in nutrients and low in organic matter as a result of continuous application of inorganic fertilizers. In order to sustain crop productivity, important nutrient management strategies have been studied at Dryland Agriculture Project, Gandhi Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Bangalore since 1978. In soil with high phosphorus status, balanced nutrition through application of nitrogen (50 kg/ha), potassium (25 kg/ha), calcium (lime @ 300 kg/ha), magnesium (MgCO₃ @ 150 kg/ha) and boron (Borax @ 10 kg/ha) recorded higher finger millet grain yield of 3706 kg/ha. The soil available nitrogen and potassium is low and phosphorus is medium, SSNM for a targeted finger millet yield of 4000 kg/ha with the application of 155:45:203 kg N, P₂O₅, K₂O/ha could achieve the yield of 3971 kg/ha during 2008–09. Application of 150% of recommended potassium (37.5 kg/ha) along with recommended N and P (50 and 40 kg/ha) improved the yield of finger millet on potassium deficient Alfisols. Soil application of ZnSO₄ @ 12.5 kg/ha and borax @ 10 kg/ha along with recommended NPK (seed treatment with molybdenum @ 2 g/kg of seed in pulses) increased yield of finger millet and pulses in soils deficit in zinc and boron. Soil application of borax @ 10 kg/ha and ZnSO₄ @ 5 kg/ha coupled with foliar spray of ZnSO₄ @ 0.5% and boron @ 0.25% at flowering stage improved the yield of groundnut. Insitu incorporation of horsegram at 8–10 weeks improved the soil fertility apart from increasing grain yield in the succeeding finger millet crop, with a saving of 50% recommended N. Application of FYM and recommended NPK increased the yield of dryland crops like finger millet and groundnut. Finger millet rotation with groundnut further increased the yield of finger millet by 25%.