Irrational use of chemical fertilizers creates harmful effects on soil health and thus, led to a drop in crop productivity in the Indo-Gangetic Plains region (IGPR) of India. Organic nutrient sources such as Panchagavya and PGPR can be used to replace some proportion of chemical fertilizers to sustain productivity and soil health in the IGPR belt. This study was undertaken to determine the effect of integrated use of chemical fertilizers, organic manures and bio-fertilizers such as Panchagavya and PGPR on the productivity and economic feasibility of different maize cultivars. Results indicated that the J-1006 cultivar showed significantly higher fodder yield, nutrient use efficiencies and profitability than P-3396 and African Tall during both years. Though, nutrient content and accumulation were statistically at par with J-1006 and P-3396, but superior over African Tall. Among nutrient management, the maize fertilized with 75% RDF + PGPR +Panchagavya spray showed significantly higher fodder yield, nutrient content, accumulation, nutrient use efficiencies and net returns compared to control and 100% RDF. Overall, the growing of maize cv. J-1006 with the application of 75% RDF + PGPR + Panchagavya spray can be recommended to enhance fodder productivity, nutrient accumulation and profitability in the IGPR belt of India.

The aim of present study was to assess the impact of integrated nutrient management in cereal-legume intercropping on fodder productivity, quality and nutrient uptake. The experiment was conducted during wet season of 2016 and 2017 at ICAR-National Dairy Research Institute, Karnal, Haryana (India). Results indicated that significantly higher green fodder yield was recorded with monocropped maize with application of 75%RDF+Zn+PGPR+FYM and 100%RDF+Zn+FYM which remained statistically similar with maize and cowpea intercropped in 2M:1C ratio with application of 75%RDF+Zn+PGPR+FYM. Maize and cowpea intercropped in 1M:1C ratio recorded 20.4% higher crude protein (CP) yield over monocropped maize. The maize planted under 1M:1C ratio showed significantly higher macro and micronutrients content over monocropped. Furthermore, the maize and cowpea sown under 1M:1C ratio with application of 75%RDF+Zn+PGPR+FYM or 100%RDF+Zn+FYM also showed significantly higher nutrient uptake (macro and micronutrients) over remaining treatments. Therefore, intercropping of maize and cowpea in 1M:1C ratio with application of 75%RDF+Zn+PGPR+FYM or 100%RDF+Zn+FYM could be recommended to enhance forage productivity, nutrient uptake and also help in curtailing the external demand of protein by augmenting on farm protein production.

The effect of green organic mulches (Sesbania aculeata and Leucaena leucocephala) and nitrogen (N) levels on growth, yield, quality and nutrient uptake of rice (Oryza sativa L.) cultivar “Pusa Basmati 1509” was investigated in aerobic rice (AR) and transplanted rice (TPR). The levels of N were control (N₀), 75% recommended dose of N (RDN); and 100% RDN) applied through Chemical fertilizer and Azotobacter chroococcum a liquid biofertilizer. A Field experiment was conducted in split plot design with four main-plot and 5 sub-plot treatments. The main plot consisted of bare soil, Sesbania mulch (10 Mg ha⁻¹, fresh weight-FW), Leucaena mulch (10 Mg ha⁻¹ FW), and TPR; and sub-plot consisted N₀; 75% RDN, 100% RDN; 75% RDN+Azotobacter, and 100% RDN+Azotobacter. The highest grain, straw and biological yields (3.84, 6.74 and 11.6 Mg ha⁻¹, respectively) and nutrient uptake were recorded with TPR followed by AR with Leucaena and Sesbania mulch. Grain, straw and biological yield of TPR over bare soil were increased by 31.9, 26.6 and 28.3%, respectively. Uptake of Fe, Zn, Mn and Cu by rice under TPR were 52, 33, 36 and 33% higher, respectively than AR under bare soil. The highest grain, straw, and biological yields (3.86, 7.79 and 11.7 Mg ha⁻¹, respectively) of AR were obtained in 100% RDN + Azotobacter compared to the rest of the treatments. Therefore, the cultivation of AR with Leucaena/Sesbania mulch along with 100% RDN and Azotobacter biofertilizer can be most productive in the study area.

The importance of selecting an appropriate berseem variety and implementing effective nutrient management practices is crucial for maximizing both the production and economic potential of forage crops. This was clearly demonstrated in a field experiment conducted during the rabi seasons of 2019–2020 and 2020–2021. The experimental setup was a factorial randomized block design incorporating five berseem varieties (Mescavi, HB-1, HB-2, BL-10, and BL-42) and five integrated nutrient management practices: 100% recommended dose of fertilizers (RDF) or NM-1, 75% RDF + plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) or NM-2, 75% RDF + municipal solid waste compost (MSWC) or NM-3, 75% RDF + farmyard manure (FYM) + PGPR or NM-4, and 50% RDF + MSWC + PGPR or NM-5. The objective of the experiment was to evaluate the physio-morphological responses, biomass yield, and economic efficiencies of different berseem varieties under various nutrient management practices. The experimental results highlighted the superior performance of the BL-42 variety in terms of growth and yield attributes compared to the other tested berseem varieties. Specifically, BL-42 showed an enhancement in total green fodder yield by 17.10%, 26.60%, 37.75%, and 28.04% over the varieties BL-10, HB-2, HB-1, and Mescavi, respectively. Moreover, the application of the 75% RDF + FYM + PGPR treatment (NM-4) significantly boosted the total green fodder yield by 13.08%, 14.29%, 34.48%, and 39.02% over the 75% RDF + MSWC, 100% RDF, 75% RDF + PGPR, and 50% RDF + MSWC + PGPR treatments, respectively. In terms of economic returns, BL-42 achieved a significantly higher gross return (GR) and net return (NR) of 194,989 ₹/ha and 145,142 ₹/ha, respectively, compared to the GR and NR of BL-10 (166,512 and 116,665 ₹/ha, respectively). Similarly, the nutrient management practice of 75% RDF + FYM + PGPR recorded the highest GR and NR (191,638 and 137,346 ₹/ha, respectively) compared to the 100% RDF treatment (167,593 and 120,716 ₹/ha, respectively). These findings underscore the critical role of variety selection and tailored nutrient management in optimizing both the yield and economic gains in forage crop cultivation. The significant differences in production and returns highlight the potential of targeted agronomic strategies to enhance the profitability and sustainability of forage farming.

An experiment was conducted during two consecutive years of 2017-18 and 2018-19 at National Dairy Research Institute, Karnal under randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replications. This study aimed to evaluate the performance of eight fodder-based cropping systems (CS) in Indo-gangetic plain region (IGP) ., sole napier bajra hybrid (CS ), sole guinea grass (CS ), napier bajra hybrid + cowpea ( )/ viz Kharif1 2 berseem ( ) (CS ), guinea grass + cowpea ( )/ oats ( ) (CS ), multicut sorghum-berseem ( ) Rabi Kharif Rabi Rabi 3 4 (CS ), cowpea-maize-oats (CS ), baby corn-cowpea-chinese cabbage ( ) (CS ), summer moong–multicut 5 6 7 Rabi sorghum–ryegrass ( ) (CS ). The results revealed that selection of the crops in different cropping systems Rabi 8 significantly influenced green fodder yield and fodder quality. Among various fodder base cropping systems, NBH + cowpea/ berseem system was recorded with significantly higher green fodder (177 t/ha/year) and dry fodder (31.5 t/ha/year) yields and also fodder quality attributes. The highest crude protein yield (40.7 q/ha/year) was also recorded in NBH + cowpea/ berseem intercropping system. In terms of economics, the highest gross and net returns were obtained from baby corn-cowpea-chinese cabbage (Rs 3.15 and 2.40lakh/ha/year, respectively), closely followed by NBH + cowpea/ berseem (Rs 2.74 and 2.15 lakh/ha/year, respectively). To ensure the year-round availability of quality fodder for dairy-based farmers, cultivation of the NBH + cowpea/ berseem cropping system proved to be a viable option.

Effect of Rhizobium Inoculation and Tillage Practices on Fodder Cowpea (Vigna unguiculata)