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Interpretive Summaries:
2008 - Spatial Variability in Soil Physio-chemical Properties and Nutrient Status in an Intensively Cultivated Village of West Bengal
2007 - Spatial Variability in Soil Physico-Chemical Properties and Nutrient Status in an Intensively Cultivated Village of West Bengal
2006 - Spatial Variability in Soil Physio-Chemical Properties and Nutrient Status in an Intensively Cultivated Village of West Bengal
Spatial Variability in Soil Physio-Chemical Properties and Nutrient Status in an Intensively Cultivated Village of West Bengal, 2006
The current study was undertaken in Sripurdanga Village of Murshidabad District in the New Alluvial zone of West Bengal. Rice is the major crop in this area, grown twice a year during February to May and July to October. A variety of other crops, such as vegetables, pulses, oilseeds, jute, and flowers combine to complete the cropping sequences. Average farm size is 1 ha or less and fertilizer applications are limited to farmers’ perception, or at best, on general recommendations provided for the whole state.
A total of 32 soil samples were collected from 0 to 15 cm depth at a 100 m x 100 m grid and GPS (Global Positioning System) coordinates of the sampling points were recorded using a GARMIN GPS Map 60 instrument. The spatial variations of soil pH, organic carbon (C), N, P, K, sulfur (S), iron (Fe), copper (Cu), manganese (Mn), zinc (Zn), and boron (B) were evaluated, which varied significantly in the study area. The organic C varied from 0.20 to 1.08%, total N from 0.017 to 0.093%, P content varied from 50 to 366 kg P2O5/ha, K varied between 87 to 448 kg K2O/ha, while Zn and S content varied from 0.24 to 3.82 mg/L and 7.75 to 82.5 mg/L, respectively. Descriptive statistics showed that the coefficients of variation (CV) were quite high for most soils properties except for pH. The CVs for N, P, and K were 24.1%, 50.9% and 36.7%, respectively. The CVs were higher for secondary nutrients and micronutrients, with Fe being the highest at 89.8%.
A survey of the cropping systems as well as fertilization history of the plots in the study area was done to relate the variability of soil parameters with the existing farming practices in the study area. Results suggested that the variation of soil nutrient contents across the study area was strongly correlated with the variability of cropping sequences adopted, and fertilizer use patterns among farmers. This suggests that the fertilization plan of an individual farmer should take into account this variability to optimize nutrient application rates for better yield and economics of crop production. The evaluated physio-chemical and nutrient status data of the area were used in the GIS (geographic information system) platform to develop variability maps of the study area. Experiments are now being designed to develop site-specific nutrient management strategies for the area based on spatial nutrient variability information to maximize yield and profit of the farmers. EZ India-45
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