Abstract:
A field experiment was conducted at the Agricultural Research Farm of Institute of Agricultural Sciences, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi on sandy-clay loam soil during kharif 2017 to study the effect of land management options and manurial application on growth, yield, quality and nutrient uptake of American cotton (
Gossypium hirsutum L.) cultivation
. The results of this experiment revealed that there was significant difference in quality parameter, nutrient uptake and relative economics with different land management options and manurial application. Raised bed sowing method recorded significantly higher plant height (81.64 cm) leaf area index (042 dm
-2/m
-2), chlorophyll content (41.40 μ mol m
-2), number of monopodial (6.83) and sympodial (10.81) branches plant
-1, dry matter accumulation (87.02 g) plant
-1, like number of boll (21.23), boll weight (4.59 g), seed cotton yield (1257.72 kg ha
-1), stalk yield (2526.58 kg ha
-1), harvest index (32.92%), cotton seed yield (759.78 kg ha
-1), lint yield (498.06 kg ha
-1), seed index (6.95 g), lint index (4.58 g) fiber strength (24.40 g tex
-1), oil content (20.10%) and oil yield (257.10 kg ha
-1), nitrogen (76.56 kg ha
-1), phosphorus (20.31 kg ha
-1), potassium (77.38 kg ha
-1) uptake, gross return (₹ 57870.62 ha
-1), net return (₹ 36087.35 ha
-1) and B: C ratio (1.37) over furrow, mulch and conventional sowing method. Among the manurial application of pressmud 2 t ha
-1 was recorded significantly higher plant height (82.02 cm) leaf area index (0406 dm
-2/m
-2), chlorophyll content (41.08 μ mol m
-2), number of monopodial (7.05) and sympodial (11.16) branches plant
-1, dry matter accumulation (85.50 g) plant
-1, number of boll (20.88), boll weight (4.72 g), seed cotton yield (1315.40 kg ha
-1), stalk yield (2713.50 kg ha
-1), harvest index (32.61%), cotton seed yield (799.93 kg ha
-1), lint yield (515.47 kg ha
-1), seed index (7.25 g), lint index (4.68 g) fiber strength (24.58 g tex
-1), oil content (19.73%) and oil yield (261.09 kg ha
-1) and nitrogen (78.60 kg ha
-1), phosphorus (20.85 kg ha
-1), potassium (79.59 kg ha
-1) uptake, gross return (₹ 57976.90 ha
-1), net return (₹ 34858.90 ha
-1) and B: C ratio (1.50) compare to vermicompost, farmyard manure and control. Among the interactions significantly higher oil yield, nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium (kg ha
-1) uptake, gross return, net return (₹ ha
-1) and B: C ratio in raised bed sowing with application of pressmud 2 t ha
-1 as compared to other treatment combinations.