International Journal of Plant & Soil Science

Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) productivity may be influenced by the combined use of bio-organics and micronutrient fertilisers. A field experiment was conducted on the sandy loam soils of the Agronomy Farm, S.K.N. College of Agriculture, Jobner (Jaipur, Rajasthan), for two consecutive rabi seasons to assess the performance of wheat under bio-organics and micronutrient fertilization. The results revealed that the application of FYM @ 5 t ha^-1 + V.C. @ 2.5 t ha^-1 + Azotobacter + PSB recorded significant increases in growth attributes, yield attributes, viz., number of effective tillers, number of grains per spike and test weight; grain, straw and biological yields; and the harvest index of wheat over the control. The results further revealed that the growth parameters (plant height, dry matter accumulation and growth indices), yield attributes (number of effective tillers, grains per spike and test weight), yields (grain, straw and biological) and the harvest index of wheat were significantly higher with soil application of Zn @ 2.5 kg ha^-1 + foliar application of Fe @ 0.5% over the control. Application of FYM @ 5 t ha^-1 + V.C. @ 2.5 t ha^-1 + Azotobacter + PSB in combination with soil application of Zn @ 2.5 kg ha^-1 + foliar application of Fe @ 0.5% registered significantly higher grain and straw yields of wheat. An economic analysis based on the net returns from the various treatment combinations showed that application of FYM @ 10 t ha^-1 along with soil application of Zn @ 2.5 kg ha^-1 + foliar application of Fe @ 0.5% generated the highest net return compared with the remaining treatments. The combined application of FYM @ 10 t ha^-1 with the soil application of Zn @ 5 kg ha^-1 recorded the highest B:C ratio among the treatment combinations.