M. K. Singh

Role and its Utilization of Beneficial Micro-Organisms for Sustainable Crop Production

Soil micro-organisms are important component of integrated nutrient management and soil biodiversity system. They play a pivotal role in the functioning of plants by influencing their physiology and development. It is very important role in biogeo-chemical cycles and has been used for crop production for decades. Plant-bacterial interactions in the rhizosphere are the determinants of plant health and soil fertility. Soil bacteria which are beneficial to plant growth, referred to plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR), which are capable of promoting plant growth by colonizing the plant root. Symbiotic nitrogen-fixing bacteria include the Cyanobacteria of the genera Rhizobium, Brady rhizobium, Azorhizobium, Allorhizobium, Sinorhizobium and Mesorhizobium . Plant growth promotion and development can be facilitated both directly and indirectly. Indirect plant growth promotionincludes the prevention of the deleterious effects of phytopathogenic organisms. This can be achieved by the production of siderophores, i.e. small metal-binding molecules. Biological control of soil-borne plant pathogens and the synthesis of antibiotics have also been reported in several bacterial species. Another mechanism by which PGPR can inhibit phytopathogens is the production of hydrogencyanide (HCN) and/or fungal cell wall degrading enzymes, e.g., chitinase and β-1,3-glucanase. Direct plant growth promotion includes symbiotic and non-symbiotic PGPR which function through production of plant hormones suchas auxins, cytokinins, gibberellins, ethylene and abscisic acid. Production of indole-3-ethanol or indole-3-acetic acid(IAA), PGPR also help in solubilisation of mineral phosphates and other nutrients, enhance resistance to stress, stabilize soil aggregates, and improve soil structure and organic matter content. PGPR retain more soil organic N, and other nutrients in the plant-soil system, thus, reducing the need for fertilizer.

'Drumstick tree' (Moringa oleifera Lam.) is multipurpose potential crop in rural area of India.

Moringa oleifera Lam., a medium sized tree species has gained importance due to its multipurpose usage and well adaptability to dry and hot climates of north-western plains, central India and dry regions of peninsular India. Moringa oleifera Lam. (family: Moringaceae) is a highly valued plant, distributed in many countries of the tropics and subtropics. It has an impressive range of medicinal uses with high nutritional value. Different parts of this plant contain a profile of important minerals, and are a good source of protein, vitamins, β-carotene, amino acids and various phenolics. The moringa plant provides a rich and rare combination of zeatin, quercetin, β- sitosterol, caffeoylquinic acid and kaempferol. In addition to its compelling water purifying powers and high nutritional value, M. oleifera is very important for its medicinal value and it is also used in Dairy and meat production in dry regions is very complex due to low quality and shortage of fodder, especially in dry periods. In case of fodder shortage. i.e. unavailability of fodder in December through May as currently green fodder is least available after wheat, alfalfa, brassica and maize harvesting. This leads towards reduced livestock production and low-quality milk and meat products. and enlarging the gap between the availability of resources and the meeting of human and animals necessities. People are fulfilling their requirements for food and shelter by depleting natural resources. Moringa oleifera is one of those plants that has been neglected for several years but now is being investigated for its fast growth, higher nutritional attributes, and utilization as a livestock fodder crop. It can be grown as a crop on marginal lands with high temperatures and low water availability, where it is difficult to cultivate other agricultural crops.

Unique technique of finger millet production under SRI system for higher yield potential in eastern India

Finger millet is a staple food crop in dryland, tribal areas and Diayara areas. It is cultivated both for grains and ‘fodder. SRI principles have been creatively adopted to suit the cultivation practices for finger millet, making it possible to produce 3-4 times more crop yield than with farmers’ traditional practices, without depending on new varieties. It does use small amounts of purchased inputs along with mostly organic inputs. It is cultivated mainly in Asia and Africa. It is staple food crop in many hilly regions of the country and it is grown both for grain and forage. In Northern hills, grains are eaten in the form of chapaties and in South India, grain flour is used for preparing gruel, cakes or unleavened bread, puddings, porridges, sweets etc. Germinating grains are malted and fed to infants and good for pregnant woman. It is considered as nutritive food for adults of different ages. Grains contain 9.2 per cent protein, 1.29 per cent fat, 76.32 per cent carbohydrates, 2.24 per cent minerals 3 per cent ash and 0.33 per cent Ca. It also contains vitamins A and B with small amount of P. It is good for persons suffering from diabetes. Green straw is suitable for making silage.

Ridge Planted Pigeonpea and Furrow Planted Rice in an Intercropping System as Affected by Nitrogen and Weed Management

Intercropping is a crop management system involving the growing of two or more dissimilar crops in distinct row combinations simultaneously on the same land area. In intercropping, the component crop species are usually sown in parallel lines enabling mechanical crop production, maintenance, and harvest. Intercropping involves crop intensification in respect to both time and space dimensions (Ahlawat and Sharma, 2002). Conceptually, an intercropping system helps for risk avoidance from epidemic of insect-pest and diseases and overcome adverse environmental conditions in agro-climatologically unstable regions along with increasing solar radiation utilization and inputs including fertilizer and water utilization compared to monoculture crops. Intercropping not only reduces the risk associated with input costs but also increases profit potential (Rathi and Verma, 1979). Moreover, it provides several major advantages namely, diversification reduces risk associated with crop failure, increased productivity per unit area and time, offers greater yield stability and utilizes the available growth resources more efficiently and sustainably. Furthering rationales of this practice, it caters to the multiple needs of the farmer, is a self-provisioning device, is a mechanism to spread labour peaks, and keeps weeds under check (Singh and Jha, 1984). A number of researchers (Enyi, 1973; Sengupta et al., 1985) reported greater land use efficiency utilizing intercropping and reductions of weed growth through competition. The yield advantage obtained through intercropping has been reported mainly due to efficient utilization and optimization of available natural growth