Abstract

Recent investigations at Coimbatore on the effects of manuring a crop on the nutritive and reproductive capacity of the resulting seed, have clearly impressed the necessity for the supply of organic matter to the soil in order to produce food stuffs well supplied with nutrients for the proper nourishment of both man and animal. It is an esta- blished fact that the organic matter in the form of humus plays the most important role in the upkeep of soil fertility as well as in the maintenance of ideal texture of the soil necessary for the growth of crops. Apart from this, the demand on the soil for increasing the out-turn from crops to meet the needs of the growing population, have necessitated the augmentation of the manurial resources for crop production. The alarming rate at which the organic matter of the soil is depleted and the urgency for making good the loss, as revealed by the soil surveys conducted in India, make it all the more imperative to supply this want immediately.

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