Future Research Strategies/Priorities

Integrated use of legumes, green manures, organic manures, crop residues, urban waste and bio-fertilizers, alone or in combination with chemical fertilizers, bring 25-50% economy in fertilizer-N applied to rice-wheat sequence and have proved to be a potential tool for sustaining the productivity of soil and crops in rice-wheat cropping systems on a long-term basis. The most critical output in this regard will be the ability to accurately adjust the rate and timing of fertilizer addition in line with organic manure management for different crops, soil types and agro-climatic situations. In this chapter, decomposition of crop residues having wide C/N ratio, advantages of manures prepared in pits, addition of nitrogenous and phosphatic compounds during preparation of organic manures, use of chemical fertilizers to supplement the organic matter, balanced use of fertilizer and manure application, and activation of biological activities are detailed. Creation of awareness about INM system, ban on use of cowdung as fuel and crop residues as feed, setting of agroforestry, growing of legumes, use of neem cake and neem leaves in rice soils, harnessing of other micro-organisms for rice-wheat development, micronutrient management, use of leaves and twigs of various plants, quantification of nutrient losses, development of better technology, soil test crop response, refinement of bio-fertilizer technology and research on the role of earthworms have also been elucidated.