Effect of organic manures on yield of pea (Pisum sativum L.)

A field experiment was conducted during rabi 2023-24 at the Research Farm, College of Agriculture, [City], Madhya Pradesh, India to evaluate the effect of integrated organic nutrient management practices on growth, yield attributes and productivity of field pea (Pisum sativum L.) cv. Vikram. Seven treatments comprising a control (no manure), sole FYM, vermicompost, poultry manure, their combinations and FYM + Jeevamrut foliar spray were tested in randomized block design with three replications. The integrated application of FYM 5 t ha⁻¹ + vermicompost 2.5 t ha⁻¹ + poultry manure 1 t ha⁻¹ (T₇) recorded significantly highest plant height (93.60 cm), number of nodules plant⁻¹ (27.50), plant dry weight (32.80 g plant⁻¹), pods plant⁻¹ (22.77), seeds pod⁻¹ (5.24), seed yield (3.12 t ha⁻¹), stover yield (5.02 t ha⁻¹) and harvest index (38.66%). This treatment proved significantly superior to all other treatments and registered 109.4% higher seed yield over the unmanured control (1.49 t ha⁻¹). The superiority of T₇ was attributed to balanced and continuous nutrient supply, enhanced microbial activity, better soil physical properties and synergistic action of the three organic sources. Thus, basal application of FYM 5 t ha⁻¹ + vermicompost 2.5 t ha⁻¹ + poultry manure 1 t ha⁻¹ is recommended as the most efficient organic nutrient management practice for obtaining significantly higher productivity and sustainability of field pea under organic farming conditions in central India.