Ginger Based Agro-Forestry Systems for Livelihood to Rainfed Areas

In rural areas particularly belonging to tropical rainfed zone, agro-forestry is a very common strategy adopted as a common popular tool for saving environmental degradation, in which multipurpose trees (MPTs) are planted with common agriculture crops. These MPTs play also a very vital role for rehabilitating degraded lands and enhancing the total productivity of the land with proper combination of these MPTs with different crops. Such kinds of agroforestry systems provide livelihood security to the farmers of rainfed areas. In India, ginger is planted as intercrop with different tree species and being a shed-loving plant, and its yield was increased as compared with monoculture system

Fatty acid composition and antibacterial potential of Cassia tora (leaves and stem) collected from different geographic areas of India

The comparative analysis of the fatty acid composition of Cassia tora (leaves and stem) was determined using gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. Twenty-seven fatty acids were identified in C. tora (leaves and stem) which was collected from three different geographical areas of India: Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh), Nainital (Uttarakhand), and Bhavnagar (Gujarat), coded as CT-1, CT-2, and CT-3, respectively. The gas chromatography–mass spectrometry analysis showed the presence of various saturated and unsaturated fatty acids. The major fatty acids found were palmitic acid, linoleic acid, linolenic acid, margaric acid, melissic acid, and behenic acid. The highest amounts of saturated fatty acids were found in leaves of C. tora collected from Bhavnagar (Gujarat) (60.7% ± 0.5%). Thus, the study reveals that C. tora has a major amount of nutritionally important fatty acids, along with significant antimicrobial potential. Fatty acids play a significant role in the development of fat products with enhanced nutritional value and clinical application. Remarkable differences were found in the present study between fatty acid profiles of C. tora collected from different locations in India. To the best of our knowledge there is no previously reported comparative study of the fatty acids of C. tora

Organic Amendments with Plant-Growth-Promoting Fungi Support Paddy Cultivation in Sodic Soil

<div><p>Excessive sodium content in sodic soils is an important limiting factor for cultivation of agricultural crops. The present study was conducted to explore the influence of a novel organic amendment (SF_OA) along with use of plant-growth-promoting fungi (PGPF) on soil properties and growth/yield of <i>Oryza sativa</i> L. The combined application of PGPF and SF_OA increased total organic carbon (TOC) (0.62%) and decreased the exchangeable sodium percentage (ESP) (15.6%) of soil more significantly from 0.56% (TOC) and 30.1% (ESP), respectively compared to SF_OA alone treatment. The combined application reduced soil bulk density, pH, and electrical conductivity (EC) and improved soil enzymatic activities. A significant negative correlation was observed between grain yield with soil ESP and bulk density (r = –0.728, and –0.789, respectively). This study showed that the combined treatment of PGPF and SF_OA could enhance the potential of organic amendments for alleviating salt stress in rice.</p></div

Stimulatory Effects of Arsenic-Tolerant Soil Fungi on Plant Growth Promotion and Soil Properties

Fifteen fungi were obtained from arsenic-contaminated agricultural fields in West Bengal, India and examined for their arsenic tolerance and removal ability in our previous study. Of these, the four best arsenic-remediating isolates were tested for plant growth promotion effects on rice and pea in the present study. A greenhouse-based pot experiment was conducted using soil inocula of individual fungi. The results indicated a significant (P&lt;0.05) increase in plant growth and improvement of soil properties in inoculated soils compared to the control. A significant increase in plant growth was recorded in treated soils and varied from 16–293%. Soil chemical and enzymatic properties varied from 20–222 % and 34–760%, respectively, in inoculated soil. Plants inoculated with inocula of Westerdykella and Trichoderma showed better stimulatory effects on plant growth and soil nutrient availability than Rhizopus and Lasiodiplodia. These fungi improved soil nutrient content and enhanced plant growth. These fungi may be used as bioinoculants for plant growth promotion and improved soil properties in arsenic-contaminated agricultural soils. Key words: pea, plant growth-promoting fungi, rice, soil enzymes, arsenic-contaminated soils Chemical fertilizers, agrochemicals and pesticides have been intensively applied to soils to increase crop production to meet food demands all over the world; however, these are disruptive to soil biological processes. Exploring nove