Customized fertilizers for higher yield and income: Evidences from on-farm validation in coconut – tuber crop intercropping system

Fifteen on-farm experiments were conducted in tropical tuber crops intercropped in coconut gardens in Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam and Pathanamthitta districts, Kerala, during 2018-2021 for the validation of customized fertilizers formulated from on-station developed Site-Specific Nutrient Management (SSNM) practices. The validation experiments were done under the aegis of ICAR-Central Tuber Crops Research Institute, Thiruvananthapuram, in a project funded by Coconut Development Board, Kochi, Kerala.Three treatments viz., T1: SSNM technology using customized fertilizers (CF) (SSNM), T2: present POP recommendation (POP) and T3: farmer's practice (FP) was evaluated in cassava, elephant foot yam and greater yam intercropped with coconut. System productivity and profitability were worked out for the different treatments based on yield and income from coconut and tuber crops in the respective treatments. Pooled analysis indicated that the coconut yield under intercropping with tuber crops under SSNM using CF was higher by 12-23% in comparison to coconut monocrop maintained unscientifically by the farmers. Tuber yield under CF proved superior over POP by 9.3% and FP by 37.4%. On an average, the net income from coconut-tuber crop intercropping system under SSNM using CF was ₹ 270396 per ha, whereas it was ₹ 198047 in POP and ₹146358 in FP and significantly outperformed sole coconut (₹ 7764).Thus, the results of the validation experiments indicated that the use of customized fertilizers in tuberous intercrops offered resilience with higher system productivity and profitability from coconut gardens

Organic management of tuberous intercrops for resilience, higher yield and profit from coconut plantations: Insights from validation experiments in Kerala, India

Fifteen on-farm experiments were conducted in tropical tuber crops intercropped in coconut gardens in Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam and Pathanamthitta districts, Kerala, during 2018-2021 for validation of organic production technologies. The validation experiments were performed under the aegis of the ICAR-Central Tuber Crops Research Institute, Thiruvananthapuram, in a project funded by the Coconut Development Board, Kochi, Kerala. Three treatments viz., T1: organic farming technology (OF), T2: POP recommendation (POP) and T3: farmer's practice (FP) were evaluated in cassava, elephant foot yam and greater yam intercropped with coconut. System productivity and profitability were worked out for the different treatments based on yield and income from coconut and tuber crops in the respective treatments. Pooled analysis indicated that the coconut yield under intercropping with tuber crops in organic mode was high by 7-13% in comparison to monocrop of coconut maintained by the farmers. Tuber yield under organic management was superior over POP by 14% and FP by 27%. On an average, the net income from coconut-tuber crop intercropping system under organic management was ₹ 2,36,133 ha-1, whereas it was ₹ 1,56,904 ha-1 in POP and ₹ 1,32,706 ha-1 in FP and significantly outperformed sole coconut (₹ 7,764 ha-1). Thus, the results indicated that organic management of coconut-tuber crop system offered resilience with higher system productivity and profitability

Organic Management Impacts on Micro-environment in Cassava

Alternative soil management practices like organicfarming assume special significance in the context ofglobal climate change for sustainable and safe foodproduction, protection of environment and humanhealth. Organic farming provides a clean environmentby promoting soil quality and sequestering soil organicC. Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) is an importanttropical tuber crop that plays a significant role in thefood and nutritional security. Cassava is the third largestsource of food carbohydrates in the tropics, after riceand maize. It is grown for its starchy roots, which servesas a staple food and also a raw material for starch, sagoand animal feed industries. It has the potential to producemaximum dry matter and has the ability to adapt to awide range of climate and soil. The favourable impact oforganic farming on growth, yield and soil properties oftuberous vegetables viz., elephant foot yam, tannia andyams has been documented (Suja et al., 2009; 2010;2012a; 2012b; Suja, 2013; Suja and Sreekumar, 2014).However, there is limited information on the effect of alternative management practices like organic farmingon the soil micro-climate (Montanaro et al., 2012). Hence the objective of this study was to investigate theeffect of organic farming on the soil micro-environmentchanges and microbial count under cassava

Presence of Phytol, a Precursor of Vitamin E in Chaetomorpha Antinnina

Phytol, a precursor of vitamin E was identified from green algae Chaetomorpha antinnina collected from Chullickal, Kochi Kerala coast, using GC-MS. Phytol is an acyclic diterpene alcohol that can be used as a precursor for the manufacture of synthetic forms of vitamin E and vitamin K1. The compound 3,7,11,15-tetramethylhexadec-2-en-1-ol also known as phytol  which exist  naturally only in single isomeric form having molecular formula C20H40O and molecular mass 296. From the total ion chromatogram more than twenty peaks were observed, the mass spectrum of the peak at Rt 21.53 was resolved and the major fragmentations were noted. Major fragmentation were m/z 71 the base peak, m/z 296 the molecular ion peak, m/z 43, m/z 57, m/z 81, m/z 95, and m/z 123. It was found that there are some other compounds apart from this identified phytol which are more complicated in structure and cannot be characterised using GC-MS. Phytol is reported to have both antimicrobial and anticancer activities. The green algae Chaetomorpha antinnina can be proposed to be a good natural source for production of phytol

Effect of chemical fertilizers and microbial inoculations on soil properties in cassava (Manihot esculenta) growing Vertisols of Tamil Nadu

Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) is an important subsidiary food and industrial raw material in the tropics. Considering the importance of the crop, an on farm experiment was conducted to study the effect of NPK fertilizer rate and biocontrol agents (Trichoderma and Pseudomonas fluorescens) and biofertilizers (Azospirillum, AM fungi and phosphorus solubilising bacteria) on soil chemical, biochemical and microbial biomass carbon in cassava growing Vertisols of Tamil Nadu during 2008 and 2009. The study was conducted in split plot design with two levels of NPK fertilizer as main plot treatments and eight microbial inoculations as subplot treatments. Azospirillum with Trichoderma (170.58 kg/ha), AM fungi with Trichoderma (57.85 kg/ha) and Trichoderma alone (473.70 kg/ha) significantly increased available nitrogen, phosphorus and exchangeable potassium by reducing the amount of NPK. Pseudomonas fluorescens with Trichoderma at 50 per cent recommended NPK rate increases the available iron in soil. The AM fungi with Trichoderma significantly increased available manganese and zinc compared to other inoculations at 50 per cent recommended NPK rate. Azospirillum with Trichoderma at the recommended NPK rate increased the urease enzyme activity (835.21 mg urea hydrolysed/g soil/h) compared to other treatments. The soil application of all cultures at 50 per cent recommended NPK rate increased soil dehydrogenase and b glucosidase enzyme activities. Interaction effect showed significantly higher microbial biomass carbon in AM fungi with Trichoderma at 50 per cent recommended NPK rate (3792.45 µg/g soil) and was on par with soil application of all cultures at 100 per cent and 50 per cent recommended rate. In general microbial inoculations at 50 per cent recommended rate gave on par or significantly higher results compared to uninoculated control at recommended NPK rate

Response of varieties of elephant foot yam (Amorphophallus paeoniifolius) to organic management

Consumer awareness regarding the impacts of high-input chemical intensive conventional agriculture on the soil, environment and human health has spurred the growth of organic agriculture systems. Organic agriculture ensures sustainable production, safe food and environmental conservation. It is estimated that more than 95% of organic production is based on crop varieties that were bred for the conventional high-input sector. Such varieties lack important traits required under organic and low-input production conditions. There is dearth of information on the response of varieties to organic management. Field experiments were conducted for two years during 2010 and 2011 at the Central Tuber Crops Research Institute, Thiruvananthapuram, to compare the growth, yield and quality performance of five elephant foot yam [Amorphallus paeoniifolius (Dennst.) Nicolson] varieties (Peerumade local, Gajendra, Sree Padma, Vegetable and Fruit Promotion Council Keralam (VFPCK) local and Sree Athira) and soil physicochemical and biological properties under organic vs conventional systems in split plot design. Varieties × production systems interaction was not significant for most of the variables. The elite as well as the local varieties responded equally well to both the systems with average corm yields of 27.72 tonnes/ha under organic and 28.55 tonnes/ha under conventional practice. The var. Gajendra responded well to organic management producing higher yield (+10%). The other varieties had lower yield losses (-2.5-15.0%) under the organic system. The corms of the varieties had slightly higher dry matter, sugar, P, K and Fe contents under organic system. The varieties also exerted similar effects on soil physicochemical and biological properties, when tested under organic and conventional management. However, Gajendra and Sree Padma effected significantly higher organic C status under organic management due to greater biomass addition on account of their innate robust plant type. In general, there was significant improvement in soil pH and bacterial count, slight lowering of bulk density and particle density, improvement in water holding capacity, secondary and micronutrient status, N fixers and dehydrogenase enzyme activity in the organic system

Sterol Composition of the Indian Green Lipped Mussel Perna virdis

Sterol composition of green lipped mussel Perna virdis was analysed using GCMS. Cholesterol was found to be the dominant sterol (54.162% of the total sterol content). Other sterols such as Cholesta-5,22-dien-3-ol (3β), ergosta-5,22-dien-3-ol (3 β,22E, 24S),  26,26-dimethyl-5,24 (28)-Ergostadien-3β-ol, 26-nor-5cholesten- 3β-ol, stigmasterol and γ sitosterol were also detected. Presence of phytosterols like stigmasterol and γ sitosterol underlines high nutritional potential and food value of this bivalve mollusk

Crop physiology of elephant foot yam (Amorphophallus paeoniifolius (Dennst. Nicolson)

Amorphophallus paeoniifolius (Dennst. Nicolson), syn. A. campanulatus (Roxb.) BL. exDence (also elephant foot yam) is largely cultivated in the Philippines, Java, Indonesia, Sumatra, Malaysia, Bangladesh, India and China. In India, it is cultivated in the states of Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Gujarat, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Jarkhand. Sree Padma, Gajendra, Sree Athira (a hybrid), Bidhan Kusum and NDA-9 are some of the high yielding Amorphophallus varieties released for cultivation. The corm production potential of this crop is 50-80 t ha-1 and net economic return is about 2000 – 3000 US$ per ha. Plant growth and corm yield is influenced by the size of planting material (corms/cormels/corm pieces), plant spacing, nutrient management and water availability. Nevertheless, the production aspect of this crop is less understood as scanty research has been conducted in this crop. The available literature on growth and productivity of elephant foot yam is briefly described in this article

Fertilizer best management practices by SSNM and customized fertilizers for elephant foot yam (Amorphophallus paeoniifolius) cultivation in India

Elephant foot yam [Amorphophallus paeoniifolius (Dennst.) Nicolson] is an important tuber crop grown in many parts of India for its starchy corm and the average yield of this crop is far below the potential productivity of 100 tonnes/ha. One of the reasons attributed to the lower yield is the imbalanced application of essential plant nutrients. Site specific nutrient management (SSNM) is the application of plant nutrients based on the soil and crop need, yield target and developed with the aid of models such as QUEFTS. This paper gives the result of four year study conducted to calibrate and validate the QUEFTS model for elephant foot yam cultivation and the development of SSNM zonation maps and secondary and micronutrient fortified customised fertilizers for the crop in major growing environments of India. Data collected from different field experiments conducted in major elephant foot yam-production regions of India during 1968 to 2011 were used to calibrate the model. The derived parameters of minimum and maximum accumulation of N (130 and 460), P (900 and 2100) and K (100 and 170) are proposed as standard borderline values in the QUEFTS model for elephant foot yam. A linear increase in corm yield was suggested by the model with N, P and K uptakes of 3.97, 0.71, and 7.05 kg N, P and K/1 000 kg corm. The average NPK ratio in total plant dry matter was 5.56:1:9.88. Based on these results, the model was calibrated using historical data as well as by conducting field experiments. It can be observed that fertilizer best management practices by SSNM resulted in an average actual corm yield of 33.45 tonnes/ha, whereas, the model predicted a yield of 35 tonnes/ha. The results of the study showed good agreement between predicted and measured corm yields during the four years, which indicated that the calibrated model can be used to improve NPK fertilizer recommendations for elephant foot yam in India. Based on the results and using soil fertility maps and agro ecological unit maps, SSNM zonation maps and secondary and micronutrient fortified customised fertilizers were developed for major elephant foot yam growing environments of India