1Department of Agronomy, Kerala Agricultural University, Thrissur-680 656, Kerala, India
2Department of Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry, Kerala Agricultural University, Thrissur-680 656, Kerala, India
*Corresponding Author: P.T. Vidhu Priyadarsini, Department of Agronomy, Kerala Agricultural University, Thrissur-680 656, Kerala, India, Email: priyadarsinividhu@gmail.com
Cowpea is one of the most versatile pulse crop that contributes significantly to the nutritional security of the country. However, cowpea yield is very low in various regions of country. Resource conservation technologies to increase productivity and nutrient use efficiency are lacking. Hence, the present research was focused on the sustainable cowpea production through nutrient use efficient technologies viz. fertilizer microdosing, nano NPK fertilization and designer seed technology.
During 2021, two pot culture experiments were conducted to standardize the fertilizer microdosing, nano NPK fertilization and designer seed technology. Based on the results, two best performing treatments from the above trials were identified; viz., recommended dose of fertilizer (RDF) (50% and 25%) applied through fertilizer microdosing with designer seeds, RDF (2/3 and 1/4) applied as nano fertilizer (NF) with designer seeds. These treatments were selected for field evaluation along with STCR (soil test crop response) equation based NPK with designer seeds, soil test based NPK with designer seeds, RDF (20: 30: 10 kg/ha) with designer seeds and control. Field evaluations were conducted thrice; during January to April 2022, October 2022 to January 2023 and February to May 2023.
Results of the study indicated that for cowpea variety Anaswara, RDF (50%) applied through fertilizer microdosing with designer seeds was the best treatment in terms of growth, yield, Nutrient Use Efficiency (NUE) and profitability. In pot culture experiments, the treatment combination of RDF (50%, 25%) applied through microdosing with designer seeds and RDF (2/3, 1/4) applied as nano fertilizer (NF) with designer seeds performed the best in terms of yield parameters. Based on the field evaluation of nutrient use efficient technologies for the cowpea variety Anaswara, RDF (50%) applied through microdosing with designer seeds emerged as the best treatment in terms of growth, yield, nutrient use efficiency and profitability.
Cowpea, Designer seeds, Fertilizer microdosing, Nano fertilizer
