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A study was conducted to explore the potentiality of coconut milk residue (CMR) for cold extrusion (pasta preparation). Proximate analysis revealed that coconut milk residue is a rich source of crude fibre (24.03%) in addition to crude fat (41.55%), crude protein (5%), total carbohydrates (26.24%) and ash content (0.97%) at 2.23 per cent moisture. The effect of coconut milk residue upon replacing durum wheat semolina on cooking qualities, colour parameters, textural property and overall sensory acceptability of pasta samples were evaluated. Incorporation of coconut milk residue significantly influenced the observed parameters (P0.05). Thus, the study recommends incorporating 10 per cent coconut milk residue in durum wheat semolina for pasta preparation. Moreover, the entrepreneurs engaged in the coconut milk/milk powder and virgin coconut oil industry would be benefitted by adopting this venture, wherein they would be able to fetch huge additional income by placing their residue product on an upgraded fast-moving consumer good (FMCG) value chain.

Soil compaction in the plow layer of soils is becoming a serious concern because of conventional tillage practices adopted by sugarcane growers utilizing a rotavator, particularly in medium to heav...

Adverse effect of intensive tillage practices on soil chemical and biological properties is already known. Soil organic carbon maintains porosity, releases nutrients for crop growth and also provides shelters to microbes. However, maintaining soil organic carbon at higher level and increasing crop productivity have become two faces of a single coin. Without addressing both issues simultaneously, the sustainability of production system will be far away. Strategic tillage intervention in no-tillage plots for sustaining long-term productivity is gaining importance. Strategic tillage through subsoiling/ripping of soil up to 45 cm depth at about 1 m spacing before sugarcane planting is feasible in sugarcane-based system. Thus, keeping the above points in view, the experiment was conducted during 2015–2017 with hypotheses of (i) whether the minimum tillage (once subsoiling) could maintain soil physical, chemical and biological parameters to sustain sugarcane productivity for longer period and (ii) how the mouldboard ploughing and/or conventional tillage practice affects these parameters and crop yields. The experiment was laid out in four preplant tillage treatments, i.e., one subsoiling (SS) and two harrowings, minimum tillage through subsoiling and direct planting of sugarcane through IISR Cutter Planter (SS), one ploughing through mouldboard plough and two harrowings (MBP + H) and conventional practice (CP—two ploughings through cultivator and one through rotavator) with six replications in randomized block design. The effect of these treatments was recorded on various soil physical, chemical and biological parameters vis-a-vis infiltration rate, cumulative infiltration and optimizing sugarcane yield in subtropical India. The results concluded that minimum tillage and direct planting of sugarcane through Sugarcane Cutter Planter could break hard impervious layer and improve soil physical, chemical and biological parameters besides improving sugarcane and sugar yields. Minimum tillage favoured build-up of soil organic carbon (SOC) and also release of nutrients for crop growth, which optimized rhizospheric environment as compared to conventional practice. Minimum tillage through subsoiling had shown major effect in reducing soil compaction in subsurface layers (bulk density—1.52 Mg m−3 (SS) vs 1.61 Mg m−3 through MBP + H). During tillering period, basic infiltration rate could reach the level of 7.5 mm/hr in SS plots compared to 5.5 mm/hr in conventional practice (CP). Minimum tillage recorded the highest SOC at all the crop growth stages. The highest mean SOC was recorded during grand growth phase (13.51 Mg ha−1). Minimum tillage altered lower amount of soil and showed the highest population of soil bacteria (log10 6.90x 105). Thus, the minimum tillage through subsoiling significantly improved sugarcane (96.32 t ha−1) and sugar yields (12.14 t ha−1) as compared to conventional tillage/mouldboard ploughing.

A field experiment was conducted at ICAR-Indian Institute of Sugarcane Research, Lucknow, with three tillage practices (T1: Control- two times ploughing with harrow and cultivator, each followed by...

Field experiments were conducted during consecutive spring seasons of 2013–2014 and 2014–2015 at ICAR-Indian Institute of Sugarcane Research, Lucknow, in subtropical India to find the best irrigation application parameters that lead to significant reduction in total water use and to characterize soil moisture spread along the furrow. The soil of the experimental site is categorized as Inceptisol neutral in reaction (pH 7.6), low in organic carbon (0.33%) and available N (187.5 kg/ha), medium in available P (19.7 kg/ha) and K (239.4 kg/ha). The treatment consisted of two length of furrows (F1-50 m and F2-75 m) and six discharge and cut-off length (D1: Furrow-8 L per second – lps + 75% cut-off length, D2: Furrow-10 lps + 75% cut-off length, D3: Furrow-8 lps + 85% cut-off length, D4: Furrow-10 lps + 85% cut-off length, D5: Border-75% cut-off length and D6: Border-85% cut-off length). Experiment was laid out in split plot design with three replications. The number of millable canes (109.27 t/ha), cane length (169.21 cm), average cane weight (0.68 kg), cane yield (50.93 t/ha) and sugar yield (6.75 t/ha) were found significantly higher under longer furrow length (75 m). Significantly highest number of shoot counts (168.61 t/ha at 180 DAP), millable canes (106.61 t/ha), cane yield (54.02 t/ha) and sugar yield (7.03 t/ha) were recorded with discharge of 10 lps + 85% cut-off length. Moisture flow pattern showed a clear downward movement of water in all the furrow irrigation combinations methods with required water availability at tail end region. Significantly voluminous root (53.25 cc/clump), longer root length (33.90 cm), higher number of root hairs (918.9 cm), wider horizontal spread (27.0 cm) and root efficiency (22.84) were observed under discharge of 10 lps at cut-off of 85% discharge of water at 10 lps with 85 m cut-off length recorded highest IWUE (2239.71 kg/ha cm). Under conventional method of irrigation, IWUE was very low. Thus, it may be concluded that to conserve and save irrigation water, a cut-off at 85% furrow length and discharge of 10 lps are efficient to soak the soil at tail end of the field. Further, the length of the furrow may be kept up to 75 m under sandy loam alluvial soils having slope less than 1%.

Ring pit method of sugarcane planting has shown promise in significantly increasing the productivity of sugarcane. However, digging of large number of circular pits was found to be very cumbersome, labour intensive and costly affair. An effort was made to develop double bottom pit digger with modified pit digging blades and power transmission to mechanize pit digging operation. It was tractor-operated, mounted-type, equipment for digging of two circular pits of 750 mm diameter and 300 mm deep at a spacing of 300 mm. Pit digger was tested and evaluated in sandy loam soil at IISR farm. Output (effective field capacity) of the pit digger was 150 pits h−1 (0.13 ha d−1). Only 23.5 man-d ha−1 was involved in pit digging using the developed pit digger as against 450 man-d ha−1 in manual pit digging. Cost of pit digging using the pit digger was ₹33,200 (US$ 499.92) ha−1 in comparison to manual pit digging of ₹90000 (US$ 1355.20) ha−1. Hence, there was a labour saving of 94.8 % and cost saving of 63.1 % in pit digging operation with the pit digger. Ring pit planting of sugarcane resulted in significant saving of irrigation water due to significant increase in irrigation water use efficiency as compared to conventional flat method of planting. Millable canes and cane yield also increased significantly. Benefit/cost ratio was highest (1.79:1) in ring pit method when pit digger was used for pit digging followed by manual ring pit planting (1.41:1) and conventional flat planting (1.36:1). Use of developed pit digger not only reduced labour involvement and cost of pit digging operation but also resulted in highest benefit/cost ratio.

Sodic soils of sandy loam, silt loam and clay loam textures having exchangeable sodium percentage (ESP) classes of 20, 40, 60 and 80 were reclaimed with 0, 10, 20, 30 and 40 % solutions of distillery effluent (DE) and gypsum in columns. Soil texture, types of amendment and initial ESP had a larger impact on chemical properties, aggregate stability and size distribution. With increase in concentration of DE, a significant reduction in ESP, pH and insignificant increase in electrical conductivity (EC) of soil was observed for all three textures. Organic carbon (OC) content was also increased significantly in soils amended with DE. Size distribution of water-stable aggregates (WSA) of soils reclaimed using 40 % solution of DE and gypsum were found at par. Depending upon initial ESP and type of amendments used, mean weight diameter (MWD) of WSA varied from 0.51 to 1.14, 0.61 to 1.37 and 0.54 to 1.63 mm for sandy loam, silt loam and clay loam soils respectively. The percentage of water-stable macro-aggregates (WSMA) (>2 mm diameter) ranged from 2.2 to 18.2 in sandy loam, from 2.2 to 19.5 in silt loam and from 4.6 to 28.5 in clay loam soils. Combined as well as individual effects of initial ESP, EC, pH, and OC were found highly significant on WSMA and MWD of WSA in distillery effluent amended soils.

Effect of distillery effluent (DE) application on electrical conductivity (EC), pH, organic carbon (OC), exchangeable Na, Ca, Mg, K content and exchangeable sodium percentage (ESP) of sodic soils of sandy loam (Hyperthermic family of Typic Haplaquept), silt loam (Hyperthermic family of Typic Haplaquept) and clay loam (Hyperthermic family of Typic Udic Ustochrept) textures was evaluated in a laboratory experiment. Six amendments, encompassing distilled water, DE solutions of four concentrations viz. 10%, 20%, 30% and 40%, and gypsum equivalent to 100% gypsum requirement (GR) were used to reclaim soils of 20, 40, 60 and 80 ESP class. Application of DE reduced pH and exchangeable Na content and increased OC, exchangeable Ca, Mg and K content of the soils appreciably but EC marginally. Magnitude of reduction in ESP was dependent on concentration of DE solution and the highest reduction in ESP of soil was observed with the application of 40% solution of DE. Extent of reduction in ESP with application of same concentration of DE was also found to be dependent on clay content of soil. It was relatively less in clay loam soil as compared to sandy loam soil. Results of this study thus indicated that distillery effluent could effectively be used in amending sodic soils of varying textures and ESP for improving their physico-chemical properties and reducing exchangeable sodium content.

Agro-climatic condition and productivity distribution pattern of sugarcane in India was studied to delineate the reasons for variation in sugarcane production, yield and distribution of area from place to place and year to year. It was found that prominent sugarcane growing soils of the country are recent alluvium, red sandy, medium black, red loamy and deep black soils but highest yield has been observed in coastal loamy soil. Soil-climatic factors influencing sugarcane yield significantly are found to be organic matter content, cation exchange capacity and pH of soil and mean annual minimum temperature. Higher sugarcane yield was observed at the places where pan evaporation and bio mass productivity potential are higher whereas higher irrigation water use efficiency has been recorded at the places of higher moisture availability index. Based on sugarcane yield contours the entire country has been classified in low, medium, high and very high sugarcane productivity potential zones. Models have also been developed for each zone to predict sugarcane yield based on mean annual weather parameters.

The performance of opium poppy (Papaver somniferum Linn) cultivars grown at four locations spread over the entire opium poppy growing belt of India was evaluated in terms of three main economic characteristics, namely seed, oil and latex yields. Distinct environmental and varietal effects on these traits were observed. The cultivars were also evaluated in terms of their adaptability and stability under different agroclimatic conditions. The seed yield showed positive and significant correlation with oil and latex yields, indicating that seed yield alone may be taken as a reliable index in breeding high oil-and latex-yielding varieties.