Abstract
PurposePhosphorus (P) deficiency in agricultural land is one of the main factors which reduce the crop production and yield. To increase the crop growth, the availability of P using the rock phosphate (RP) can be enhanced using organic waste with the addition of phosphate solubilizing microorganisms (PSMs). Moreover, the combination along with time and dose application of RP and compost can also affect the P-availability through mineralization and/immobilization.MethodsTo investigate the effect of different combinations of RP and compost (0:100, 25:75, 50:50, 75:25 and 100:0) and time of application (30, 15, 7, 3 and 0 days before sowing), each was conducted in two consecutive pot experiments while, the rate of application (100–1000 kg ha−1) was investigated under field conditions, in comparison to control (recommended P fertilizer).ResultsRock phosphate enriched compost (RP-EC) with a combination ratio of 50:50; RP and compost applied before 7 days of sowing in pot experiments resulted in the maximum nodulation, growth and productivity of chickpea. Under field conditions, the maximum increase of 35.3% in no. nodules plant−1, 26.7% in dry wt. of nodules plant−1 and 20.8% in grain yield (t ha−1) compared to control was obtained by RP-EC @ 1000 kg ha−1. The same treatment indicated an increase of 12.9 and 4.3% in P contents in straw and grains, respectively, compared to control. However, most results were non-significant when RP-EC applied at the rate of 1000 kg ha−1.ConclusionApplication of RP-EC, with the ratio of 50:50 (RP:Compost) and application rate of 800 kg ha−1 before 7 days of sowing, exhibited maximum growth and development, and can be highly recommended for optimum production of chickpea.
Highlights
The agricultural soils are getting phosphorus (P) deficient after nitrogen (Vance et al 2003) and impairs the various physiological and biochemical processes within plants (Wu et al 2005)
We have investigated the effects of the optimum ratio of combination between rock phosphate (RP) and compost in Rock phosphate enriched compost (RP-EC), its time and rate of application with phosphate solubilizing microorganisms (PSMs) strain (Bacillus spp.) on nodulation, growth and productivity of chickpea
The different combination ratios of RP-EC were applied at 600 kg ha−1 (0.3 g kg−1 soil), thoroughly mixed with soil and the pots were arranged in completely randomized design (CRD) with six replications
Summary
The agricultural soils are getting phosphorus (P) deficient after nitrogen (Vance et al 2003) and impairs the various physiological and biochemical processes within plants (Wu et al 2005). The direct application of RP has been found suitable for acidic soils as low pH helps to solubilize the RP and increases available form of P to the plants. This approach does not work for alkaline/or calcareous soils due to high pH (Caravaca et al 2004). Addition of organic fertilizers improves the physicochemical as well as biological properties of soil (Adhami et al 2014; Lim et al 2015). Most of the organic fertilizers are produced from biodegradable solid wastes using compost or/and vermicompost (Wu et al 2014; Lim et al 2016)
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