IMPACT OF CONSERVATION AGRICULTURE AND WEED CONTROL MEASURES ON SOIL PHYSICAL AND BIOLOGICAL PROPERTIES UNDER RICE-WHEAT-MUNGBEAN CROPPING SYSTEM IN VERTISOLS

NISHA SAPRE¹*, M.L. KEWAT², A.R. SHARMA^3
1Department Agronomy, College of Agriculture, Jawaharlal Nehru Agricultural University, Krishinagar, Adhartal, Jabalpur, 482004, Madhya Pradesh, India
²Department Agronomy, College of Agriculture, Jawaharlal Nehru Agricultural University, Krishinagar, Adhartal, Jabalpur, 482004, Madhya Pradesh, India
³Directorate Weed Research, Jawaharlal Nehru Agricultural University, Krishinagar, Adhartal, Jabalpur, 482004, Madhya Pradesh
* Corresponding Author : toughysingh@gmail.com

Received : 20-09-2016     Accepted : 24-09-2016     Published : 01-11-2016
Volume : 8     Issue : 53       Pages : 2691 - 2695
Int J Agr Sci 8.53 (2016):2691-2695

Keywords : Conservation tillage, Weed control, Rice-wheat-mungbean, Biological properties
Academic Editor : Ajay Chourasiya
Conflict of Interest : None declared
Acknowledgements/Funding : None declared
Author Contribution : None declared

A field experiment was conducted during 2014-15 and 2015-16 at DWR, Jabalpur (M.P.) to assess the impacts of conservation agriculture and weed control measures on soil physical and biological properties under rice-wheat-mungbean cropping system in vertisols. The experiment consisted of fifteen treatments comprising of, five tillage as main-plot treatments and three weed control measures as sub plot treatments were, laid out in split plot design with three replications. Among the tillage treatments, maximum bulk density was found in transplanted rice-conventional tilled wheat (1.41 g/cc) followed by zero tillage in rice -wheat -mungbean without presence of previous crop residues (1.40 g/cc) after the second year of experiment. Maximum porosity (47.81 %) was observed in conventional tillage in both rice and wheat with zero tillage in mungbean with presence of previous crop residues. However, weed control measures did not affect the bulk density and porosity of soil. Zero tillage in rice-wheat-mungbean with previous crop residues had higher population of total bacterial (14.43 and 29.12 x 106 cfu/g first and second year respectively), and, fungal, (10.20 and 18.89 x 104 cfu/g, first and second year respectively) actinomycetes (9.23 and 14.08 x103 cfu/g first and second year respectively) and dehydrogenase (20.74 and 26.03 µg TPF/ soil/2hr, first and second year respectively) activity during both years. Whereas, maximum population of bacteria, fungus, actinomycetes and dehydrogenase activity (15.90 and 28.63 x 106 cfu/g, 9.46 and 21.55 x 104 cfu/g, 11.10 and 14.48 x103 cfu/g and 25.05 and 35.99 µg TPF/ soil/2hr, first and second year respectively) was found in weedy plots.