Influence of Organic Manures and Chemical Fertilizer on Nutrient uptake, Yield and Profitability of Mungbean (Vigna radiata (L.) Wilczek)

Mungbean [Vigna radiata (L.)Wilczek] is an excellent source of high quality protein and contains about 25 per cent protein. India grows nearly 23 m ha of pulses with an annual production of 14 million tonnes with an average productivity of 617 kg/ha (Anonymous,2009). In Rajasthan, the total area under mungban is 1.06 million hectares with an annual production of 0.42 mt and productivity of 396 kg/ha which is very low as compared to its yield (658 kg/ha) obtained under National Demonstration Projects (Anonymous,2007). Moreover, chemical fertilizers are becoming costlier input in agriculture. Therefore, it is necessary to evaluate the feasibility and efficiency of organic wastes not only for improving and building up of soil fertility but also to increase efficiency of chemical fertilizer. Integrated use of chemical fertilizer with organic manure has been found to be quite promising not only in maintaining higher productivity but also in greater stability to crop production (Nambiar and Abrol, 1992). FYM also acts as a source of energy for the growth of soil microbes. Improvement in physical properties of soil, organic carbon and available nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium due to long term application of FYM and fertilizer has been well documented by Babulkar et al. (2000). Vermi compost is a sustainable bio-fertilizer regenerated from organic wastes using earthworms. Vermi compost is a rich source of N, P, K and micronutrients. Bio-fertilizers are other organic source which play an important role in meeting the nutrient requirement of crops through biological nitrogen fixation (BNF). Inoculation of seeds with phosphate solubilizing bacteria increases nodulation , crop growth, nutrient availability, their uptake and crop yield of field pea (Srivastava and Ahlawat, 1993). The need of the hour is to evolve an integrated plant nutrient supply Influence of Organic Manures and Chemical Fertilizer on Nutrient uptake, Yield and Profitability of Mungbean [Vigna radiata (L.) Wilczek]