Effect of Crop Establishment Methods and Precision Nutrient Management on Growth, Yield Attributes and Yield of Rice under Rice-wheat System

Rice-wheat system is the major contributor in food security of India. The significance of the system is well addressed by time to time but, excessive use of resources, stagnation in yield, environment deterioration including erosion and nutrient mining are the greater challenge it possess. To address the issue a study was carried out at Banaras Hindu University's Agricultural Research Farm in Varanasi during the Kharif and Rabi seasons of 2019-20 and 2020-21, respectively. The experiment plotted in a split plot statistical design with three replications and four crop establishment methods: CE1: Conventional till rice (puddled transplanted)-Conventional till wheat, CE2: Conventional till direct seeded rice (DSR)-Conventional till wheat, CE3: Conventional till DSR-Zero-till wheat (rice residue retained), and CE4: Zero-till DSR-Zero-till wheat (residue retention in rice and wheat) crop establishment method among the main plot treatments and Rice-Wheat Crop Manager (RWCM)-based nutrient recommendation among the sub plot treatments. CE4 treatment among main plot and N3 among nutrient management practices produced higher values of plant height and number of tillers at 30, 60, 90 days after sowing and at harvest, as well as yield attributes i.e. maximum number of panicles m2 and grains per panicle, than the other treatments. The same treatments also resulted in increased rice grain yield. There was approximately 12 % higher grain yield under CE4 over CE1 and 8 % higher grain yield in N3 over N1 was recorded. These results might be due to better nutrient availability, better organic carbon which leads to improved microbial activity, and better moisture availability under these treatments. It may be concluded that conservation agriculture-based crop establishment i.e. CE4: Zero-till DSR-Zero-till wheat (residue retention in rice and wheat) and RWCM-based nutrient application, may be favourable for improved growth, yield attributes and yield in the rice crop under the region of eastern Uttar Pradesh.