Abstract

A field experiment was carried out during kuriai (June September) (South West Monsoon) and thaladi (October - January) (North East Monsoon) seasons of 1990-91 to evaluate the effectiveness of Sesbania rostrata grown as intercrop and ratoon in transplanted rice-rice sequence. Direct and residual effects of S.rostrata on rice yield and chemical properties of soil were studied. Grain and straw yields of rice were increased significantly due to green manuring. Fertilizer nitrogen could be saved upto 50 per cent through green manuring. Soil chemical properties viz., organic carbon content, available N and K were increased significantly with green manure incorporations, particularly in ratooned ones, as compared to no green manuring. Green manuring combined with 50 kg N/ha was found to be better than pure stand of rice with 100 kg N/ha.

Keywords: Rice, Crop Sequence, Green Manuring, Fertilizers, Yield, Soil Properties