INFLUENCE OF ABIOTIC FACTORS ON SOIL MESO- AND MACRO-FAUNA IN ORGANIC FARMING ECOSYSTEM
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Date
2015-07-10
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UNIVERSITY OF AGRICULTURAL SCIENCES GKVK, BENGALURU
Abstract
Experiments were carried out at the Zonal Agriculture Research Station, UAS Bengaluru during 2014-15.There were ten treatments with varying combinations of FYM (0-20 t/ha, partially decomposed, with Glyricidia mulch) and conventional fertilizers (0, 25, 50, 75 and 100 % of 100:50:25 kg NPK /ha). Fodder maize was grown in this 13 years old plot during kharif season. Native fauna containing undisturbed soil was introduced equally to each treatment. Application of 20 t of FYM/ha recorded higher abundances of collembolans, cryptostigmatids, other Acari, other invertebrates and macro-arthropods compared to other treatments during cropping and non-cropping seasons. This treatment recorded significantly high soil organic carbon (1 %), available nitrogen (389.45 kg/ha), phosphorous (79.45 kg/ha), potassium (304 kg /ha), exchangeable calcium, exchangeable magnesium and microbial biomass carbon (5172 μg /g) and plant biomass (98.38 t/ha) compared to recommended fertilizer alone and package of practices. The latter two treatments recorded significantly lower soil organic carbon (0.65 and 0.75 %), available Nitrogen (309.13 and 337.28 kg/ha), Phosphorous (56 and 67.22 kg/ha), Potassium (172.8 and 266.8 kg/ha), microbial biomass (3079.07 and 3996.15 μg/g) and Plant biomass (73.19 and 86.02 t/ha), respectively. Soil invertebrate abundance was positively correlated with the above soil chemical parameters and microbial biomass carbon. Abiotic factors had 31.9 per cent impact on soil meso-fauna. Total rainfall, soil moisture and relative humidity (maximum and minimum) were positively correlated with soil organisms. Influence of soil moisture on the activity of meso-fauna was up to 28 per cent
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