Impact of crop establishment and residue management on soil properties and productivity in rice‐fallow ecosystems in India

Abstract

The degradation of agricultural land, both chemical and biological, is a big concern all over the world. Crop cultivation practices that are distinctive to each location have negative consequences for agricultural production. Therefore, there is an urgent need for better crop and soil management techniques. This experiment was conducted for 5 years (2016–2020) to identify the best crop establishment‐cum‐residue management (CERM) practices and suitable crops for succession after the rice harvest in rice‐fallow ecosystems of India. Experimentation was conducted in the split‐plot design and each treatment was replicated thrice, having CERM in main‐plot and post‐rainy season/winter crops in sub‐plot. All the CERM treatments had two variants, with crop residue (R+) and without crop residue (R−). Rice yields were markedly higher (19.1%–32.2%) in transplanted puddled rice with residue (TPR‐R+) over conventional‐till direct seeded rice (CTDSR) and zero‐till DSR (ZTDSR) treatments. However, TPR adversely impacted the performance of all the post‐rainy pulses/oilseed crops. Post‐rainy season crop yields under ZTDSR/CTDSR were 14.9%–45.8% higher leading to higher system productivity as compared to TPR. ZTDSR with residue retention showed higher soil aggregation. The practice of ZTDSR increased the soil dehydrogenase activity (46.2%), urease activity (29.8%), soil microbial biomass carbon (65.4), and fluorescein diacetate activity (9.0%) in the crop root zone with 3.3‐ and 4.47‐times higher earthworm population and earthworm biomass, respectively. The rice‐pulse system showed 1.74‐times more earthworm population over rice‐oilseed sequences. Total soil organic carbon (SOC) stock in ZTDSR was 21.8% higher over TPR in 0–45 cm soil profile. Thus, the adoption of ZTDSR practices and diversification of rice‐fallows with pulses crops is recommended for enhancing the crop productivity, increasing SOC stock, and improving soil biological properties in the rice‐fallow ecosystems of India.

Influence of conservation agriculture-based production systems on bacterial diversity and soil quality in rice-wheat-greengram cropping system in eastern Indo-Gangetic Plains of India

“…Both CA and partial CA-based scenarios showed significantly higher SOC than farmers’ practice. The SOC content of soil in CA-based systems are less prone to loss due to lower soil disturbance and SOC gets protected within soil aggregates resulting in higher SOC ( Kumar et al, 2022b ). Higher available macro-nutrient (N, P and K) and micro-nutrient (Mn, Zn and Cu) under CA-based scenarios could be ascribed to nutrient mobilization and mineralization caused by higher microbial activity and presence of a more labile pool of carbon ( Naik et al, 2017 ).…”

Land degradation and development in India: Status quo, challenges and opportunities

“…Soil binding through deep‐rooted cropping systems may facilitate soil structural stability and greenhouse gas sequestration. However, an agronomical study reported 20% increase in soil organic carbon stock after 6 years of crop establishment and their residue management (Kumar, Mishra, et al, 2022). The cultivation of diverse crops and applying microbial consortium has received the attention of many researchers as this can offer multiple services and resilience to ecosystems (Awasthi et al, 2014; Awasthi et al, 2017).…”

Sustainable Intensification of Rice Fallows with Oilseeds and Pulses: Effects on Soil Aggregation, Organic Carbon Dynamics, and Crop Productivity in Eastern Indo-Gangetic Plains

“…Several CSA technologies can improve crop productivity and build resilience to the climatic changing risks for smallholder farmers of rice-fallow areas. This can be done by choosing short-duration high-yielding rice varieties that have fewer water requirements and are tolerant to abiotic stresses, direct-seeded rice crop establishment methods, retaining rice stubble for moisture conservation, and introducing short-duration varieties of oilseeds and pulses [14]. As ~15 M ha in South Asia remains fallow (uncultivated) after the rice harvest each year, there are great scopes to increasing the cropping intensity as well as overall system productivity, which will concurrently improve profitability and can be the instrument used to achieve food and nutritional security in the regions.…”

“…To achieve self-sufficiency in oilseeds and pulses and to curtail the outflow of the foreign currency for import, short-duration high-yielding oilseeds (e.g., mustard, linseed, and safflower) and pulses (viz. chickpea, lentil, lathyrus, and field pea) may be grown in the rice-fallow system depending on the residual soil moisture and lifesaving irrigation [14]. Additionally, pulses facilitate soil health restoration by fixing atmospheric nitrogen (N) and adding crop biomass, which ultimately improves the soil organic C (SOC) status of the soil [14].…”

“…chickpea, lentil, lathyrus, and field pea) may be grown in the rice-fallow system depending on the residual soil moisture and lifesaving irrigation [14]. Additionally, pulses facilitate soil health restoration by fixing atmospheric nitrogen (N) and adding crop biomass, which ultimately improves the soil organic C (SOC) status of the soil [14]. Moreover, the surface cover offered by post-rainy/winter crops after rice harvesting protects the soil from erosion by external forces, such as wind and water, and lowers the oxidation of soil organic matter (SOM).…”