Influence of effective microorganisms and green manure on soil properties and productivity of pearl millet and alfalfa grown on sandy loam in Saudi Arabia

Abstract

A field experiment was conducted to study the effect of effective microorgani sm s and green manure on soil properties and yield of pearl millet (Penni setum glaucum (L.) R. Br.) and alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) grown on sandy loam soil under arid conditions at Agriculture Experimental Station of King Abdulaziz University (KAU), Hada Al sham, Saudi Arabia. Four treatments were investigated. In control (T1), the soil was only treated with the recommended dose of mineral fertilizers required for the culti vated crops. The second treatment (T2) wa s a diluted solution (1:1000) of effective microorgani sm s (EM1) sprayed on the soil surface. The third treatment (T3) was green manure added as soil mulch above the ground while the fourth treatment (T4) was mixture of EM1 and green manure together. Results indicated that, EM1 and green manure improved forage yield and soil propertie s. The best improvement in yield was found in T4 and T3 of alfalfa and pearl millet fields, respectively. These treatments re sulted also in the great reduction in soil bulk density and saturated hydraulic conductivity, high water retention and soil organic matter. Total nitrogen, phosphorus, pota ssium, iron and magnesium were also increa sed under the se treatments. Li ttle enhancement in physi cal and chemical properties of soil was pronounced in T2 treatment since the improvements were not significant compared with the control. The re sults sugge sted that using green manure alone or mixed with EM1 i s a practical method to enhance soil properties and productivity of coarse texture soil s under dry land conditions.