Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Split application of vermicompost to rice (Oryza sativa L.): its effect on productivity, yield components, and N dynamics

  • Published:
Organic Agriculture Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Organic agriculture is gaining a gradual momentum across the world for improving nutritional quality of food, restoring soil health, generating rural economy, and creating better environmental conditions. Organic agriculture can foster sustainability in subhumid tropical soils low in organic carbon. Nutrient use efficiency of basal soil application of vermicompost is very low. Thus, this study was aimed to test whether nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) and crop yield can be enhanced by split application of vermicompost. There is no published information on split application of vermicompost (VC) in rainfed rice. An experiment with rice (cv. Pankaj) was conducted on loam soil in Giridih, India, during 2008 and 2009. Vermicompost, a rich source of readily available nutrients, has high microbial activity and contains growth hormones. Study comprises one of three split applications of vermicompost at different growth stages of rice (i.e., maximum tillering, panicle initiation, and flower). Split application of vermicompost resulted higher yield parameters such as panicles (294 m−2), filled grains per panicle (138), and total spikelets per panicle (142), grain yield (3.91 t ha−1), and NUE, but only if vermicompost was applied at two or three doses. Higher availability of nitrogen (N) in soil with split applications coincides with higher NUE, and thus, split application not promoted N losses. Split application of vermicompost enhances the sustainability of rice cropping system.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Banik P, Sharma RC (2009) Effect of organic and inorganic sources of nutrients on the winter crops-rice based cropping systems in sub-humid tropics of India. Arch Agron Soil Sci 55:285–294

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Bejbaruha R, Sharma RC, Banik P (2009) Direct and residual effect of organic and inorganic source of nutrients on rice based cropping systems in sub-humid tropics of India. J Sustain Agric 33:674–689

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bezbaruha R, Sharma RC, Banik P (2011) Effect of nutrient management and planting geometry on productivity of hybrid rice (Oryza sativa L.) cultivars. Am J Plant Sci 2:297–302

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Bhandari AL, Ladha JK, Pathak H, Padre AT, Dawe D, Gupta RK (2002) Yield and soil nutrient changes in a long-term rice-wheat rotation in India. Soil Sci Soc Am J 66:162–170

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Bhattacharyya R, Sachdev MS, Uppal KS, Narayanaswamy G, Datta SP, Singh AK (2006) Effect of nitrogen N 15-labeled urea application alone and in combination with FYM and green manure on yield and nitrogen use efficiency by rice. J Indian Soc Soil Sci 54:500–504

    Google Scholar 

  • Cochran WG, Cox GM (1992) Experimental designs. Wiley, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Dobermann A, Fairhurst TH (2000) Rice: nutrient disorders and nutrient management. Potash and Phosphate Institute of Canada (PPIC) and IRRI, Norcross.

  • Dobermann A, Dawe D, Roetter RP, Cassman KG (2000) Reversal of rice yield decline in a long-continuous cropping experiment. Agron J 92:633–643

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Edwards CA (1998) Breakdown of animal, vegetable and industrial organic wastes by earthworms. In: Edwards CA (ed) Earthworm ecology. CRC, Boca Raton, pp 292–300

    Google Scholar 

  • Gandhi M, Sangwan V, Kapoor KK, Dilbaghi N (1997) Composting of household wastes with and without earthworms. Environ Ecol 15:432–434

    Google Scholar 

  • Gastal F, Lemaire G (2002) N uptake distribution in crops: an agronomical and ecophysiological perspective. J Exp Bot 53:789–799

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Jackson ML (1973) Soil chemical analysis. Prentice-Hall of India, New Delhi

    Google Scholar 

  • Jadhav AD, Talashilkar SC, Pawar AG (1997) Influence of the conjunctive use of FYM, vermicompost and urea on growth and nutrient uptake in rice. J Maharashtra Agric Univ 22:249–250

    Google Scholar 

  • Kale RD, Mallesh BG, Bano K, Bagyaraj DJ (1992) Influence of vermicompost application on the available macro-nutrients and selected microbial population in a paddy field. Soil Biol Biochem 24:1317–1320

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Keeney DR, Bremner TM (1966) Exchangeable NH4, NO3 and NO2 by direct distillation method. Soil Sci Soc Am Proc 30:577–582

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Manivannan R, Sriramachandrasekharan MV (2009) Effect of organic sources and urea on N transformation and lowland rice grown in clay loam soil. Res J Agric Biol Sci 5:1104–1109

    Google Scholar 

  • Murali A, Ramasamy P, Mohammad AM (2007) Impact of post panicle initiation nutrient management on the yield of rice. Res J Agric Biol Sci 3:638–641

    Google Scholar 

  • Myint AK, Yamakawar T, Kajihara T, Myint KKM, Zenmyo T (2010) Nitrogen dynamics in a paddy field fertilized with mineral and organic nitrogen sources. American-Eurasian J Agric Environ Sci 7:221–231

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Nielson RL (1985) Presence of plant growth substances in earthworm demonstrated by paper chromatography and went pea test. Nature 208:1113–1114

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Peng S, Buresh RJ, Huang J, Zhong X, Zou Y, Yang J, Wang G, Liu Y, Hu R, Tang Q, Cui K, Zhong F, Dobermann A (2010) Improving nitrogen fertilization in rice by site-specific N management—a review. Agron Sustain Dev 30:649–656

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Perez CM, Juliano BO, Liboo SP, Alcantara JM, Cassman KG (1996) Effects of late nitrogen fertilizer application on head rice yield, protein content, and grain quality of rice. Cereal Chem 73:556–560

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • San-oh Y, Kondo M, Ookawa T, Hirasawa T (2008) Ecophysiological analysis on effect of planting patter on biomass production and grain yield in rice. JARQ 42:79–89

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Sreenivas C, Muralidhar S, Rao MS (2000) Vermicompost, a viable component of IPNSS in nitrogen nutrition of ridge gourd. Ann Agric Res 21:108–113

    Google Scholar 

  • Tandon HLS (1992) Fertilizers and their integration with organics and bio-fertilizers. In: Tandon HLS (ed) Fertilizers, organic manures, recyclable wastes and bio-fertilizers, (p 32–36). Fertiliser Development Consultation Organisation, New Delhi

    Google Scholar 

  • Vaarst M (2010) Organic farming as a development strategy: who are interested and who are not? J Sustain Develop 3:38–50

    Google Scholar 

  • Walkley A, Black IA (1934) An examination of the Degtjareff method for determining soil organic matter, and proposed modification of the chromic acid titration method. Soil Sci 37:29–38

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Westerman RL, Kurtz LT (1974) Isotopic and non isotopic estimation of fertilizer nitrogen uptake by Sudangrass in field experiments. Soil Sci Soc Am Proc 38:107–109

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Agricultural and Ecological Research Unit, Indian Statistical Institute, 203, Barrackpore Trunk Road, Kolkata, 700108, India

    R. Bejbaruah, R. C. Sharma & P. Banik

Authors
  1. R. Bejbaruah
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. R. C. Sharma
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. P. Banik
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to P. Banik.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Bejbaruah, R., Sharma, R.C. & Banik, P. Split application of vermicompost to rice (Oryza sativa L.): its effect on productivity, yield components, and N dynamics. Org. Agr. 3, 123–128 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13165-013-0049-8

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13165-013-0049-8

Keywords

Search

Navigation