Nutrient source efficiency relations on the productivity of cowpea in summer rice fallows
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Date
2006
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Department of Agronomy, College of Horticulture, Vellanikkara
Abstract
A field experiment was conducted in the rice fallows of Agricultural Research Station, Mannuthy, during the summer season (February – April) of 2005, to study the effect of different sources of nitrogen and phosphorus on growth, yield and quality of cowpea and to asses the possibility of reducing the quantity of fertilizers through inoculation of phosphate solubilising bacteria and foliar application of diammonium phosphate.
The experiment was laid out in randomized block design with seventeen treatments and three replications. The treatments included were, different sources of nitrogen and phosphorus along with or with out phosphate solubilising bacteria inoculation and foliar application two percent diammonium phosphate twice and package of practices recommendation alone.
Most of the growth characters, dry matter production, yield and yield attributes and uptake of N, P, K, Ca, Mg, and S were higher in the treatments which received nitrogen in the form of urea and phosphorus in the form of rock phosphate. The influence of rock phosphate was more when it was applied along with phosphate solubilising bacteria inoculation. Foliar application of two percent diammonium phosphate at pre flowering and flowering stages increased the growth characters and drymatter production but showed a reduction in yield and yield attributes of cowpea.
The protein content of grain and Bhusa was not significantly influenced by various sources of nitrogen and phosphorus, phosphate solubilising bacteria inoculation and foliar spray of two percent diammonium phosophate.
None of the treatments could bring about much impact on soil nutrient status. However, complete basal application of nitrogen and phosphorus showed a slightly higher content of N, P, K, Ca, Mg and S over their 50 percent application. Moreover, application of nitrogen as ammonium sulphate resulted in a slightly higher content of sulphur in the soil compared to application of urea.
Among the various treatments, considering the growth and yield of cowpea as well as economics, basal application of 50 percent nitrogen as urea and 50 percent phosphorus as rock phosphate along with phosphate solubilising bacteria inoculation and subsequent foliar spray of two percent diammonium phosphate at pre flowering and flowering stages was found to be the best.
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