Background: Blackgram being important crop among pulse is gaining popularity and thus requiring suitable crop production practices especially under organic farming. In this context, this study was proposed with the objective to investigate the optimal nutrient management practices in organic blackgram by utilizing various organic nutrient sources. Methods: Field experiments were conducted at two different locations in spilt plot design. The treatments consisted of 4 levels of organic manure viz., Farm Yard Manure (FYM) @ 12.5 t ha-1, Vermicompost (VC) @ 2.5 t ha-1, Enriched FYM (EFYM) @ 750 kg ha-1 and Enriched VC (EVC) @ 1 t ha-1 as main plot treatments and five levels of foliar spray of liquid manure viz., two foliar sprays of Panchagavya @ 3% and Fermented egg extract (FEE), Fermented fish extract (FFE), Farmers effective microorganisms (FEM), Jeevamruth each @ 5%. Result: Results revealed that application of EFYM and VC, produced higher yield parameters and grain yield, respectively under main plot organic manure addition at site-I and II. Among the sub plots liquid manure treatments Panchagavya spray has produced higher grain yield along with the yield parameters at both the sites. Among the organic manures higher economic returns were obtained with the application of EFYM at both the sites while among the liquid manures better returns were obtained with the application of Panchagavya at site-I and Panchagavya or FEM spray at site-II.

Rice, a staple crop for over half the global population, faces severe yield losses due to insect pests, such as the rice stem borer (Scirpophaga incertulas), brown planthopper (Nilaparvata lugens) and leaf folder (Cnaphalocrocis medinalis) and minor insect pests, which are significant threats to global food security. Traditional reliance on chemical pesticides for pest control has negatively impacted the environment, human health and non-target organisms. This has necessitated a shift toward sustainable pest management strategies that minimize chemical inputs. Botanicals, derived from plants as essential oils, extracts and secondary metabolites, have emerged as an eco-friendly alternative due to their biodegradability, targeted efficacy and reduced environmental footprint. These plant-based compounds act through various mechanisms, including antifeedant activity, growth inhibition, oviposition deterrence, ovicidal effects and toxicity, effectively disrupting pest lifecycles without harming non-target species. Studies underscore the potential of botanicals in suppressing pest populations and mitigating crop losses, making them vital components of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) strategies. When incorporated into IPM programs alongside biological control agents, cultural practices and resistant rice varieties, botanicals enhance pest control efficacy while preserving ecosystem balance and promoting biodiversity. Their use aligns with sustainable agriculture principles, offering a viable path to reduce pesticide dependency and ensure long-term agricultural resilience. This review highlights the critical role of botanicals in IPM for rice cultivation, emphasizing their potential to mitigate pest impacts while supporting environmentally sustainable and economically viable food production systems.

Background: Traditional organic formulation bijamrith prepared from fresh urine and dung of cow is an important element in natural farming and extensively applied in modern agriculture practices to improve the soil fertility, control pest and disease in plants. The scientific validation of the biologically active compounds in bijamrith is unexplored. Methods: Bijamrith was prepared from excrements of Gir cow. Since, the volatile low molecular weight organic compounds from cow wastes could be derived from the solvent extract using GC-MS effectively, the compounds were separated by liquid-solvent extraction method using diethyl ether solvent and analyzed by GC-MS. Result: GC-MS analysis revealed the elution of about 40 different compounds in bijamrith formulation. Among them, fatty acid namely 9-octadecenoic acid (Z)-, an ester compound 2,3-dihydroxypropyl occupied higher concentration with peak area of 13.96% at 29.29 minutes of retention time which were reported to possess antifungal, antibacterial and anti-inflammatory activity. The other biologically active compounds eluted were antioxidants, plant growth hormones, nematicidal agents for defense mechanism and improvement of plant health.

To overcome the adverse effects of synthetic pesticides in rice, organic farming by utilizing botanicals is a viable alternative. The bio-efficacy of cow-urine-based extracts of neem (Azadirachta indica), nochi (Vitex nigundo) and adhatoda (Adhatoda vasica) was studied. The experiments targeted major sucking insect pests, brown plant hopper (BPH) and green leaf hopper (GLH), in wetland paddy fields, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, during Rabi 2023. The results showed that the cow-urine-based extracts of neem, nochi and adhathoda (NNA) leaves @15 % were most effective against BPH and GLH with 70.23 and 72.48 percent reduction over control (PROC), which was on par with NNA leaf extract @10 % and the PROC were 67.13 and 68.18, respectively. Individual 10 % leaf extracts of Neem, Nochi and Adhatoda recorded lower PROC values against BPH (53.68 %, 55.40 % and 53.68 %) and GLH (52.68 %, 55.75 % and 53.02 %) compared to the combined NNA extract at 15 % and 10 %. The neem, nochi and adhatoda (NNA) leaf extract @ 15 % has a moderate impact on beneficial arthropods, expressed as percent impact over control (PIOC) for natural enemies like spiders (27.70), coccinellids (32.99), rove beetles (10.88), mirid bugs (19.95) and ground beetles (43.99). Foliar application of NNA leaf extract at 10 % resulted in lower PIOC values (26.28 %, 31.33 %, 10.14 %, 18.74 % and 39.86 %, respectively, for spiders, coccinellids, rove beetles, mirid bugs and ground beetles), indicating its relative safety for beneficial arthropods. The eco-friendly, cost-effective and residue-free nature of the cow-urine-based neem, nochi and adhatoda leaf extract can be easily incorporated into the Integrated Pest Management programmes in the organic rice production system.

This study focuses on predicting surface soil temperature (ST) at a 5 cm depth, which significantly influences agricultural decisions such as sowing time, irrigation management and soil-plant-atmosphere dynamics. Machine learning (ML) algorithms were used to predict ST using above-ground weather variables viz., air temperature (T), relative humidity (RH), wind velocity (WV) and sunshine duration (SS) measured at 15-min intervals. Six regression-based ML models (Ensemble, Gaussian Process Regression, Support Vector Machine, Tree, Neural Network and Kernel) were trained and tested for predictive accuracy. The Ensemble Bagging Tree model showed the highest precision, with RMSE values of 2.04 and 1.9 for validation and testing, respectively. Various combinations of the weather variables were tested and the model performed best when using above mentioned variables. Among the predictors, T had the greatest impact on ST prediction, as indicated by mean absolute Shapley values. The Shapley values of the variables revealed that T had a critical role in the model output, with time, SS, RH and WV following in importance. Additionally, as a model explainable artificial intelligence (xAI) metrics, SHapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) were analysed and found that SHAP dependency had a defined relationship between the predictors and ST at a 5 cm depth. This study highlights the effectiveness of machine learning in predicting soil temperature and emphasizes the role of weather variables in agricultural decision-making. decision-making.

Jasmine (Jasminum spp.) plays an important cultural and economic role in India, with Tamil Nadu leading its production, contributing over two-thirds of the national output. The insecticide use pattern study explores how jasmine farmers across nine key districts in the state manage pest control, focusing on the types of insecticides they use and where they get their information. Based on field surveys with 170 farmers conducted between 2024-2025, the findings show that most growers (85.93 %) are marginal farmers with less than one hectare of land and 42 % have only a middle school education. Low-volume power sprayers were the most widely used equipment (71.48 %), pointing to a preference for efficient and easy-to-use tools. When it comes to insecticides, broad-spectrum and mixed compound products dominate in the jasmine crop. The most widely used insecticide was Spirotetramat + Imidacloprid SC (29.81 %), especially in Krishnagiri (46.15 %) and Coimbatore (40 %). Commonly used single-compound choices include Alphamethrin 10 % EC (10.60 %) and Imidacloprid 70 % WG (8.66 %). On the other hand, newer, potentially safer alternatives like diamides (1.78 %) and spinosyns (0.62 %) saw very limited use. Most farmers relied on local input dealers for guidance (51.86 %), while trained extension officials were rarely approached (8.14 %). Heavy dependence on familiar chemical solutions and culminating point the need for better outreach, education and access to safer pest management options to support the long-term sustainability of jasmine farming.