Evaluation of Sowing Methods, Irrigation Schedules, Chemical Fertilizer Doses and Varieties of Plantago ovata Forsk. to Rehabilitate Degraded Calcareous Lands Irrigated with Saline Water in Dry Regions of Northwestern India

Abstract

To get best economic returns from the degraded calcareous soils, which otherwise remain barren in arid and semi-arid regions of northwestern India due to non-availability of good quality water for irrigation, experiments were conducted for three years cultivating Plantago ovata Forsk. using saline water for irrigation on sandy loam soil. Six different sowing methods were compared, irrigating with saline water of electrical conductivity of 8.6 dS m−1. The yield was better when seeds were sown in dry soil followed by saline irrigation in comparison to when sown in moist soil created by pre-sowing irrigation with saline water. When different frequencies of irrigation were compared using water of low salinity (ECiw 4.0 dS m−1), high salinity (EC 8.6 dS m−1), and providing irrigation with waters of low and high salinity alternately, the average un-husked seed yield was found to be 1102, 885, and 1159 kg ha−1, respectively, showing significant advantage when the crop was irrigated alternately with water of low and high salinity. There was increase in yield with increase of frequency of irrigation. Experimentation with different doses of nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizers found that the yield was optimum during first year at 25 kg ha−1 and 50 kg ha−1 during second year. There was an increase in yield when increasing the dose of phosphorus, and there was a significant interaction between nitrogen and phosphorus application. Among eight varieties the best performance was shown by variety JI-4 followed by Sel-10, Niharika, HI-5, GI-2, GI-1, local, and HI-34, in descending order.