IMPACT OF PUDDLING AND TILLAGE PRACTICES ON SOIL PHYSICAL PROPERTIES AND CROP PRODUCTIVITY UNDER RICEWHEAT CROPPING SYSTEM IN ALFISOL
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Date
2006
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Indira Gandhi Krishi Vishwavidyalaya, Raipur
Abstract
An experiment was conducted during the kharif and rabi season of 2003-
04 and 2004-05 at Instructional Farm, IGAU, Raipur to investigate the impact of
puddling in rice and tillage practices in wheat on soil physical properties and
crop productivity under rice-wheat cropping system in Alfisol. In this study, four
rice establishment methods (viz. P1 - direct dry seeding, P2 - drum seeding, P3 -
manual transplanting, P4 - mechanical transplanting)were used and its residual
effect on tillage practices (viz. T1 – conventional tillage, T2 – zero tillage, T3 -
strip tillage, T4 - bed planting) adopted in wheat were assessed in respect of
changes in soil physical properties, root growth and crop productivity.
The soil physical properties viz., bulk density, hydraulic conductivity,
infiltration rate, per cent water stable aggregates, mean weight diameter,
cracking and drying pattern were significantly affected by different rice
establishment methods. Puddling significantly reduced the bulk density of
surface layer (0-0.07 m) at initial stage (15 DAT) but at harvesting, the puddled
treatments attained significantly higher value than direct dry seeded treatment.
The bulk density of sub surface (0.15 – 0.22 m) puddled layer was higher than
direct dry seeding and maximum under mechanical transplanting. Further, the
hydraulic conductivity and infiltration rate, percent water stable aggregates
(WSA > 2.0 mm) and mean weight diameter were reduced significantly in
comparison to direct dry seeded rice. Puddled soil had higher water retention
capacity and formed wider cracks upon drying as compared to unpuddled plots.
At 0-0.10 m depth, the percent root distribution was approximately 8% higher
under puddled treatments than direct dry seeding. The root length density, root
volume and root dry weight were higher under direct dry seeding treatment in all
the depths, at 30 DAT. But, at later stage (70 DAT) these parameters were higher
under manual transplanting treatment upto 0.20 m depth. The performance of
direct dry seeding was similar to manual transplanting with slight reduction in
yield (4.63%). However, the direct dry seeded rice gave higher net returns
(5.94%) and benefit: cost ratio (22.64%) than manual transplanting with an
advantage of 10.13%, 6.15% and 5.09% in energy output input ratio, energy use
efficiency and specific energy, respectively.
Among different wheat tillage practices conventional and bed planting
significantly reduced the bulk density and increased the hydraulic conductivity
and infiltration rate than the zero tillage and strip tillage at the surface layer.
However, the percent WSA >2mm and mean weight diameter under zero tillage
and strip tillage was higher by 11% and 5% respectively as compared to
conventional tillage and bed planting, but effect was non significant. The root
length density and root volume was significantly higher in conventional and bed
planting upto 0.20 m depth. The wheat grain yield was significantly effected by
different tillage practices. The highest grain yield was obtained under
conventional tillage and lowest under strip tillage. There was no significant
effect of rice establishment methods and wheat tillage practices on the organic
carbon, available nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium status of soil during both
the years. The direct dry seeding had significant residual effect in improving soil
physical properties, root growth and yield of succeeding wheat crop.
Under rice wheat cropping system, on the basis of BC ratio, energy
output input ratio and energy use efficiency, the performance of direct dry
seeding of rice during kharif followed by zero tillage for wheat during rabi stood
first. However, direct dry seeding of rice followed by conventional tillage for
wheat proved to be more remunerative as compared to the other treatments on
the basis of net returns and specific energy.