Smruti Ranjan Padhan

Climate change is one of the biggest challenges faced by humanity today, and it poses a threat to food security and agricultural production worldwide. Agronomy, which is the science of crop production and soil management, has a significant role to play in mitigating the effects of climate change. Agronomic practices such as conservation agriculture, cover cropping, crop rotation, and reduced tillage have been found to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and enhance carbon sequestration in soils. These practices also contribute to improved soil health and water conservation, which are important for climate change adaptation. In addition, the use of precision agriculture technologies, such as remote sensing, precision planting, and variable rate fertilization, can reduce the extend of inputs required and improve the efficiency of production, further reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Thus, agronomy has a vital role to play in climate change mitigation and adaptation in agriculture. The adoption of sustainable agronomic practices can contribute significantly to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, enhancing carbon sequestration, and promoting food security. However, to maximize the potential of these practices, it is important to address the challenges and limitations associated with their implementation and to promote the adoption of climate smart agronomy practices mitigating its effects through enhancing productivity, adaptation, and mitigation, ensuring food security, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and promote sustainable agriculture.

A field experiment was conducted during kharif
2022 for exploring the effect of planting density and N management on hybrid maize (Zea mays L.) in eastern India at the experimental farm of ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, Gauria Karma, Jharkhand. The treatments comprised of three planting densities viz., 67.5 cm × 20 cm (D1), 67.5 cm x 22 cm (D2) and 67.5 cm × 25 cm (D3) in main-plots and five nitrogen management practices viz., control, farmers practices (FP), RDN-conventional, 75 per cent RDN-SSB (sub-surface band placement) and RDN-SSB in sub-plots and replicated thrice. The results of the study indicated that the growth
parameters, viz plant height, leaf area index (LAI), dry matter accumulation and net assimilation rate was significantly higher at D1. However, crop growth rate, relative growth rate and net assimilation rate was obtained highest in D2 and D3, respectively. Similarly, these growth parameters were enhanced by RDN-SSB. However, significantly higher grain yield was obtained with D2 with
RDN-SSB. Further, statistically at par growth parameters as well as grain yield was obtained under RDN- conventional and 75 per cent RDN-SSB which shows that saving of 25 per cent N could be achieved through sub-surface band placement. It was concluded that of growing of maize with 67.5 cm × 22 cm spacing and fertilization with recommended dose of N as sub-surface
band placement is recommended for yield maximization and saving of 25 per cent N can be achieved with sub surface band placement without any yield penalty and benefit-cost ratio is also higher at 67.5 cm × 22 cm in Eastern region of India.

Sulphur (S) is an indispensable macronutrient for plant growth and development, and its role in enhancing the productivity and quality of legume crops has garnered increased attention in agricultural research. This comprehensive review explores the multifaceted significance of sulphur fertilization in legumes, shedding light on the pivotal role it plays in optimizing crop performance. From its involvement in amino acid synthesis and protein formation to its impact on chlorophyll production and antioxidant defense mechanisms, sulphur is a key player in the intricate web of plant metabolic processes. The review delves into the intricate molecular mechanisms that underlie sulphur assimilation and its impact on various physiological functions in legumes. Additionally, it investigates the influence of sulphur on legume crop quality parameters, emphasizing its effect on protein content and amino acid profiles, as well as its role in improving crop resistance to abiotic and biotic stresses...

Biofuel offers an alternative energy source to meet the energy demands of a growing population of 8 billion while minimizing environmental impact. Globally, around 3000 petajoules of biofuel are produced, diversifying energy sources from conventional to renewable. Corn, rich in starch that can be converted into ethanol, is widely used in biofuel production. Corn-based biofuels are popular due to their potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, their biodegradability, and clean ignition, enhancing energy security. While the current state of corn as a biofuel source appears promising, increasing production requires breeding strategies like varietal crossing and cultivar selection to enhance biomass and starch content. Better agronomic practices and extension strategies are also necessary to improve yield and promote adoption among farmers. Using maize as a feedstock for biofuel production can boost the agricultural industry, create jobs in farming, processing, and transportation, a...

Biogas bioslurry, which is normally a bio-digestion product from livestock refuse, can be utilized as an inorganic fertilizer, thus boosting not only soil fertility but also crop growth and yield. Its use can mitigate climate change by reducing methane gas emissions, which are associated with the direct application of fresh animal manure. The current study was carried out on farmer’s fields based at Wusi-Kishamba and Werugha wards in Taita Taveta County, Kenya, and it aimed at investigating the effect of bioslurry coupled with synthetic fertilizer on potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) growth and yield. There were four treatments: sole bioslurry, sole fertilizer (DAP), bioslurry + DAP, and control, which were replicated five times in a randomized, complete block-designed layout. Data were collected on plant growth (plant height and leaf length) and yield (marketable and unmarketable tubers and the number of tubers plant−1). The results indicated a general increase in plant height from wee...

A three-year field experiment was carried out to assess the efficacy of various tillage and residue management practices, as well as weed management approaches, in a rice–wheat–green gram rotation. The treatments included: conventional till transplanted rice–conventional till wheat–fallow (T1); conventional till transplanted rice–zero-till wheat–zero-till green gram (T2); conventional till direct-seeded rice—conventional-till wheat—zero-till green gram (T3); zero-till direct-seeded rice—zero-till wheat—zero-till green gram (T4); zero-till direct-seeded rice + residue zero-till wheat + residue zero-till green gram (T5). In weed management, three treatments are as follows: recommended herbicides (W1); integrated weed management (W2); and unweeded (W3). The integrated weed management treatment had the lowest weed biomass, which was 44.3, 45.3, and 33.7% lower than the treatment W3 at 30 and 60 days after sowing and harvest, respectively. T1 grain and straw yielded more than T2 in the e...

A field experiment was conducted during kharif season of 2019 at Crop Research Centre of G.B. Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Pantnagar (Uttarakhand) for evaluation of six rice genotypes (IET-27263, IET-26418, IET-26420, NDR-359, PD-19 and PD-26) under varying fertility levels (Control, 100% RDF, 150% RDF). Treatments were tested in Split Plot Design with three replications keeping fertilizer levels in main plots and genotypes in sub plots. Application of fertilizer at 150% RDF and genotype IET-27263 resulted in significantly taller plants, highest number of tillers, highest dry matter accumulation over all other fertilizer levels. So, it can be recommended that application of fertilizers at higher dose is essential for obtaining higher yield of rice as most of the parameters of growth, development and yield were responding well up to 150% RDF. The new rice genotype IET27263 was found superior to all other tested genotypes.

The conventional non-basmati rice (Oryza sativa L.) is neither economical nor sustainable in IGP. Therefore, an on-farm study was carried out at the farmer’s field in Karnal district of Haryana to find out alternative by diversified crops having legume (summer mungbean) with the best tillage and residue management practices. The intensification through conservation agriculture (CA)-based crop management within the RW system (CTR–ZTWMb and DSR– ZTWMb) and beyond with diversification by maize (ZTMWMb and ZTMMuMb) gave statistically on par yield to conventional non-basmati rice (CTRW). Compared to CTRW, total water use was reduced by 0.8 and 14.8% in CTR– ZTWMb and DSR–ZTWMb, respectively. The total water use was significantly reduced by 53.9 to 60.8% with maize and soybean (ZTMWMb, ZTMMuMb, and ZTSWMb) over DSR–ZTWMb and CTRW. The net returns increased by ₹3.7–6.5 × 103/ha in CTR–ZTWMb and DSR–ZTWMb over the CTRW. In diversified systems, net returns increased by ₹10–16.5 × 103/ha with...

Parthenium hysterophorus is a prime noxious weed across the world and resorting its nativity weed to Tropical North and South America which has invaded more than 50 countries throughout the world. It was accidentally introduced in India with food-grains imported from Mexico. Parthenium plant contains chemicals, like parthenin, hysterin, hymenin, and ambrosin, and due to the presence of these chemicals, the weed exerts strong allelopathic effects on different crops. Parthenin has been reported as a germination inhibitor as well as radical growth inhibitor in a variety of dicot and monocot plants. Because of its strong competitiveness for soil moisture, space and nutrients with crops and its allergenic properties, it poses serious threat to cereal crops and livestock. Parthenium is difficult to control because of its wider adaptation to diverse climatic conditions. The aim of this research article is to explore effect of environmental factors on germination, shoot and root length of P...

The field experiment was conducted during kharif 2019 at ICAR-CURRS-NRRI at Hazaribagh, Jharkhand. The experiment was conducted to evaluate precision nutrient management and weed management practices for achieving minimum weed menace and maximum crop productivity. Under precision nutrient management, Nutrient Expert ® guided NPK recorded lesser weed density (7.76, 8.07 and 8.62) at all three stages. Pendimethalin fb hand weeding resulted in comparatively lesser weed density (7.72, 7.29 and 7.34 at 25, 60 DAS and at harvest). Nutrient Expert ® guided NPK resulted in maximum grain yield (3.63 t/ha), followed by Leaf Colour Chart (LCC) guided N + Full P & K (3.41 t/ha), which was significantly higher over RDF. Among the weed management aspects, pendimethalin fb hand weeding and bispyribac-Na were observed with significantly higher grain yield (4.09 and 3.79 t/ha). Hence Nutrient Expert ® guided NPK and pendimethalin fb hand weeding can be recommended for better weed management and enh...

Genetic toxicology is a multidisciplinary field of research that explores the detection of harmful and defensive DNA compounds, the understanding of DNA disruption’s biological effects, and its molecular modes of action that lead to the modification and repair of genetic material. The damage to the genetic material is caused by the genotoxic substance’s interaction with the structure and sequence of deoxyribonucleic acid of plants. These genotoxic substances function at a specific position or base sequence of the structure of DNA, causing disruption, fracturing, fusion, deletion, mis-segregation or non-disjunction, resulting damage, and mutation. Many herbicides use inactivation “target proteins” (usually enzymes) that are necessary for important functions such as chemicals or other plant-specific pathways of synthesis. Since crops usually use competing weeds to share these cycles, most herbicides are non-selective. Others are used mostly by collection of resistant species, primarily due to a differential absorption or metabolism of the herbicides or to a certain position. Another provides protection against herbicides of wide-spectrum. This could encourage the use and choice of these different compounds to be environmentally responsible and non-toxic. A plant can reduce the translocation of herbicides on several pathways. In modern years, plants were genetically engineered to fight the lethal effects of herbicides. The resistance of the natural herbicides in plants is responsible for different forms, the target site insensitivity, and the toxic herbicide degradation of the toxic by-products are noteworthy. Both these pathways have been simulated in genetically engineered plants either by excessive expression of the target enzymes or by developing foreign defence products that could easily detoxify the herbicides.

An agronomic field experiment on "Precision nutrient management in maize (Zea mays L.) for higher productivity and profitability through Decision Support Tools" was conducted at ICAR-IARI New Delhi, India during kharif 2018. The objective was to enhance seed yield and economics of maize crop trough precision nutrient management. The growth (plant height, dry matter, leaf area, leaf area index), and yield attributes and seed yield were improved under precision nutrient management practices of NE+GS7T, NE6T, NE7T, and NE+GS 6T. The maximum LAR was observed with NE+GS7T at 60 DAS. Maximum cob length was 15.92 cm under NE7T. Plant height was maximum under NE7T (192.5 cm) and NE+GS7T (191.3 cm), similarly maximum dry matter accumulation was in NE7T, which was >22.0% over state recommendation at harvesting stage of maize crop. Grain yield, total biomass of maize was also the highest under NE7T nutrient management (6.2 t/ha). Maximum net return was in NE7T (` 75194/ ha) and le...

The conventional non-basmati rice (Oryza sativa L.) is neither economical nor sustainable in IGP. Therefore, an on-farm study was carried out at the farmer's field in Karnal district of Haryana to find out alternative by diversified crops having legume (summer mungbean) with the best tillage and residue management practices. The intensification through conservation agriculture (CA)-based crop management within the RW system (CTR-ZTWMb and DSR-ZTWMb) and beyond with diversification by maize (ZTMWMb and ZTMMuMb) gave statistically on par yield to conventional non-basmati rice (CTRW). Compared to CTRW, total water use was reduced by 0.8 and 14.8% in CTR-ZTWMb and DSR-ZTWMb, respectively. The total water use was significantly reduced by 53.9 to 60.8% with maize and soybean (ZTMWMb, ZTMMuMb, and ZTSWMb) over DSR-ZTWMb and CTRW. The net returns increased by `3.7-6.5 × 10 3 /ha in CTR-ZTWMb and DSR-ZTWMb over the CTRW. In diversified systems, net returns increased by `10-16.5 × 10 3 /ha with maize systems compared to three rice production scenarios. Similarly, in soybean, net returns enhanced by `4.6 × 10 3 /ha over the CTRW systems. Moreover, there was a significant decrease in global warming potential (GWP) by 53.4-69.1, 53.3-69.0 and 46.9-64.8% was observed under ZTMWMb, ZTMMuMb and ZTSWMb, respectively over the three RW system treatments. These results demonstrate that crop diversification with the inclusion of maize and soybean with CA may be opted to improve crop and water productivity and farmer's income replacing traditional rainy (kharif) season non-basmati rice in Western Indo-Gangetic Plains (IGP).