Effects of planting methods and integrated nutrient management on yield, nutrient uptake, and soil nutrient availability in finger millet (Eleusine coracana G.)

A field experiment was conducted in Settividuthi village, Pudukkottai district, Tamil Nadu, from April to August 2020, to study the effects of integrated nutrient management and planting techniques on the yield, nutrient uptake, and soil nutrient availability of finger millet (Eleusine coracana G.). A total of eighteen treatments were evaluated in a split plot design with three replications. The sub-plot treatments consisted of six nutrient management techniques, whereas the main plot treatment comprised planting techniques. Results indicated that the primary plot treatment, utilizing the SRI planting technique, achieved higher grain yield and nutrient uptake. In the planting methods, the SRI method yielded a grain output of 3244 kg/ha and a straw output of 6320 kg/ha, that were significantly higher than those from conventional transplanting and direct sowing. With respect to nutritional availability, there was no significant difference among the planting methods regarding the soil's available NPK, organic carbon content, and microbial population after harvest. The direct sowing method, however, yielded numerically higher values of soil available NPK, organic carbon content, and microbial population in post-harvest soil. The treatment of the sub-plot that leads to maximum finger millet yield, nutrient uptake, and availability is 75% RDF combined with pressmud at a rate of 25 kg/ha and seaweed extract granules at the same rate. Under the control plot (S₁), the nutrient uptake was observed to be the lowest.