Nano-pyrite seed dressing: a sustainable design for NPK equivalent rice production

Abstract

The use of fertilizers has been the cornerstone in ensuring the global food security. However, the continuous use of excess fertilizers is polluting the water resources and damaging the fragile ecosystem. The key question is ‘how farmers could use lesser fertilizers without reducing crop yields?’ This is a challenge for the sustainable agriculture. Here we showed, in rice crop, seed dressing with nano-pyrite (FeS2), without any addition of NPK (nitrogen, phosphorous and potash) fertilizer, resulted in a comparable yield as obtained following standard fertilizer application. The total grain yields from control (no fertilizer application), standard NPK fertilizer application, ‘FeS2 seed pre-treatment only’ without any application of NPK, NPK + FeS2 treatment were recorded as 1.32 ± 0.0, 1.61 ± 0.1, 1.63 ± 0.1 and 1.68 ± 0.1 [mean (in kg) ± SD], respectively. Interestingly, simultaneous application of FeS2 seed pre-treatment plus fertilizer did not show any significant additive effect. Thus, nano-pyrite seed pre-treatment opens up an ‘NPK equivalent’ strategy for rice production, which could setup a new sustainable paradigm for rice growers.