To study the effect of various combinations of Biofertilizer (BF), Biosap (BS) and Chemical fertilizer (CF) on the vegetative growth of crop plant, Amaranthus dubius, and to determine the best combination for maximum yield

Abstract

The experiment was designed, carried out in duplicate over a period of three months, and the crop chosen was Amaranthus dubius that is known to require a short growth duration and lowmaintenance. The experiment was primarily aimed at analysing the effect of three products created for improving crop health and increasing the water retention of the soil. The biofertilizer used was a new invention with a specific microbial consortia capable of surviving in all sorts of environmental conditions and enhancing nutrient uptake. The other twoproducts provided by Hindustan Gums and Chemicals Ltd. were the Biosap and the Chemicalfertilizer infused Biosap. The Biosap component is a new product which is essentially a polymer that when applied to soil increases its water holding capacity. When used in combination with chemical fertilizer, the uptake of the nutrients seemed to increase in the laboratory results. Accordingly, the experiment was designed with eight treatments to find outwhich combinations of these products would give better yield based on crop type. The treatments were laid down in randomized block design. The parameters analysed were germination percentage, plant height, internode length, photosynthetic area, number of leavesand root spread. From the results obtained, treatment 8, which was the combination of biofertilizer, and chemical fertilizer infused biosap, gave the best results with respect to all the parameters except photosynthetic area. Treatment 2 which contained only chemical fertilizer showed the best photosynthetic area of the plant compared to all other treatments. The best treatments used in the experiment has a future potential for introduction on a large scale into field application that would reduce the amount of chemical fertilizer applied, which is well known to cause soil degradation in the long run and prove to be a cost-effective alternative. KEYWORDS Amaranthus dubius, Biofertilizer, Chemical Fertilizer, Biosap.