Effect of different fertility levels on yield of brown sarson (Brassica rapa L.) and post harvest physico-chemical properties in alfisols

The effect of integrated nutrient management (INM) on various soil physical and chemical properties was evaluated using brown sarson (brassica rapa L.) as a test crop under greenhouse conditions. The experiment was carried out under eight different treatment combinations of NPKS, vermicompost and Azotobacter viz., one treatment of balanced chemical fertilizers i.e., T2 (100% NPKS), four treatments of organic fertilizer sources i.e., T1 (control), T3 (Azotobacter), T4 (vermicompost) and T5 (vermicompost + Azotobacter) and three treatments of combined fertilizers i.e., T6 (75% NPKS + 50% vermicompost), T7 (75% NPKS + Azotobacter) and T8 (50% NPKS + 25% vermicompost + Azotobacter) in a Complete Randomised Design (CRD) with three replications. The results revealed that the yield parameters significantly increased with different treatment combinations of NPKS, vermicompost and Azotobacter. The treatment T6 (75% NPKS + 50% vermicompost) was found superior for the seed yield. Application of balanced NPKS along with vermicompost and Azotobacter significantly improved soil physico-chemical properties. Application of inorganic fertilizers showed marked improvement in post-harvest available nutrients (N, P, K and S). The combined effect of T6 (75% NPKS + 50% vermicompost) showed significantly much better results for available nutrients (N, P, K and S).