Integrated Nutrient Management: A Pathway to Enhanced Growth and Yield in Amaranthus tricolor L.

Abstract

The present study was conducted to determine the effect of different levels of manures, fertilizer, and biofertilizers application, either alone or in combination on seed germination, vigor, and yield of Amaranthus. Recommended rates of organic manures viz., farmyard manure (5 t/ha) and vermicompost (2.5 t/ha) biofertilizers i.e., Azotobacter and Phosphate solubilizing bacteria @ 200g per 10 kg of seed were integrated with the recommended dose of fertilizer @ 60: 40: 20 kg/ha NPK. The experiment was designed with twelve treatments with three replications that were laid out in a randomized complete block design. Results revealed that the treatment T12 which consists of half dose of NPK + half dose of vermicompost + Azotobacter and PSB observed early emergence of seeds (3.60 days) along with higher germination percentages (84.53 percent) as well as vigorous seedlings in terms of vigor index-1 (5.75) and vigor index-2 (5.56). The crop was harvested three times at a height of 20 cm and by the application of treatment T12, plants take minimum time for harvest i.e., 21.65, 30.65, and 41.16 days along with the highest yield i.e., 0.50, 1.15, and 0.85 kg per plot at first second and third harvest respectively. Therefore, it is clear that combining inorganic fertilizers with organic manures could increase soil health in addition to enhancing growth and facilitating consistent nutrition for the Amaranthus crop.