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Intensive tillage with no crop residue after rice harvest in conventional wheat cultivation increases the turn around time, delays sowing and affects the yield. A field experiment was carried out to assess the effect of sowing dates, establishment methods and mulching and their interaction on growth, productivity and profitability of spring wheat at agronomy farm of AFU, Rampur Chitwan, Nepal from November 2020 to April 2021. The experiment was laid out in strip-split plot design, with three dates of sowing (20th November, 5th December and 20th December) in vertical plots, two establishment methods (Zero tillage and Conventional tillage) in horizontal plots and two levels of mulching (0 t ha-1 and 5 t ha-1 of rice straw mulch) in sub-plots and replicated thrice with Vijay as test variety. Data regarding the phenology, growth parameters, yield attributes and yield were recorded, analyzed and presented. The research results revealed that date of sowing and mulching significantly influenced phenology, growth, yield attributes, yield and their interactions. The higher grain yield was obtained in 5th December as well as 20th November sowing in conventional tillage with mulch (4511.49 & 4492.12 kg ha-1 respectively). These grain yields were statistically at par with 5th December and 20th November sowing in zero tillage with mulch (4363.74 & 4129.97 kg ha-1 respectively). Net return and B:C ratio were significantly higher on 5th December and 20th November sowing with mulch in zero tillage than 20th December sowing in conventional tillage without mulch. Int. J. Appl. Sci. Biotechnol. Vol 10(4): 237-244.

To investigate the effects of fertilization, tillage, and their interaction on maize yield, an experiment on rice-maize was conducted on 2018/19 and 2019/20 at Agriculture and Forestry University (AFU), Rampur, Chitwan, Nepal. The experiment was in a split-plot with two establishment methods viz. (i) zero tillage followed after (fa) conventionally tilled dry direct seeded rice (ZT fa CT-DDSR) (ii) conventional tillage fa puddled transplanted rice (CT fa Pu-TPR) and four nutrient management practices, i.e. (i) recommended dose (100% RDF; 180-90-60 N-P2O5-K2O kg ha-1), (ii) Residue retention of rice crop @ 5 t ha-1 + 75% RDF (RR +75% RDF), (iii) Nutrient expert (NE) dose (150-50-90 N-P2O5-K2O kg ha-1), (iv) Rice residue @ 3.5 t ha-1 +75% RDF followed after brown/green manuring of Sesbania in rice (R+75% RDF fa BM/GM) and the treatments were replicated thrice. The data on yield and yield attributes were recorded and analyzed by R studio. Both crop establishment methods and nutrient management practices did not influence (p>0.05) the plant population, number of cobs per plant, number of grains per cob, thousand-grain weight, and sterility. The barrenness percentage was not significantly affected by the crop establishment methods but significantly (p>0.05) lower under residue retained treatments. Application of NE dose, sterility was significantly (p0.05) for both crop establishment methods whereas application of NE dose, RR+75% RDF, and R+75% RDF fa BM/GM resulted in significantly (p

A field experiment on “Performance of hybrid maize under different levels of nitrogen and plant population” was conducted in Randomized complete block design (RCBD) at the research farm of the National Maize Research Program (NMRP), Rampur, Chitwan during the winter season of 2015/16 to determine the optimum level of nitrogen and plant population for winter season hybrid maize. The grain yield (2.38 Mt ha-1) obtained in control without nitrogen was significantly lower in comparison to its all other levels (70, 140 and 210 Kg N ha-1). Moreover, grain yield (5.45 Mt ha-1) produced by the application 210 Kg N ha-1 was significantly superior over 70 Kg N ha-1 (3.83 Mt ha-1) but remained at par with 140 Kg N ha-1 (5.02 Mt ha-1) which also differed significantly. Moreover, the grain yield (4.98 Mt ha-1) recorded with the population of 101010 plants ha-1 was significantly superior over 55,555 (3.34 Mt ha-1) and 69,444 (3.90 Mt ha-1) plants ha-1 but similar to that of 85,470 plants ha-1 (4.46 Mt ha-1) which was also significantly higher as compared to 69,444 and 55,555 plants ha-1 which were at par with each other. Regression analysis for the effect of nitrogen and plant population on grain yield showed the grain yield was 145 Kg N ha-1 and plant population was 87445 plants ha-1. Thus, hybrid maize (RML95/RML96) can be successfully grown by applying 145 Kg N ha-1 and maintaining a population of 87 thousand plants ha-1 to achieve a higher grain yield during the winter season.

A field trial was conducted at Fulbari, Chitwan in 2017 to evaluate the growth, productivity and economics of rice production under different nutrient management practices. Trial was laid out in a split-plot design with five replications. The main plot factor consisted of two rice varieties (Radha-4; improved variety and Arize Tej Gold; a popular Hybrid) and subplot factor consisted of five different nutrient management practices farmers’ applied dose (FAD;0-20:0-15:0-18 NPK kg ha-1), government recommended dose (GRD; 100:30:30 NPK kg ha-1), NARC recommended dose (NRD; 120:60:40 NPK kg ha-1), LCC based N and NE® based P, K dose (LCC-N+NE-P,K; 90-115:5-22:17-50 NPK kg ha-1 for Radha-4 and 90-140:5-36:38-73 NPK kg ha-1 for Arize Tej Gold), Nutrient Expert® based NPK dose (NED; 93-109:5-22:17-50 NPK kg ha-1 for Radha-4 and 118-125:5-36:38-73 NPK kg ha-1 for Arize Tej Gold). Data regarding biometrical, phenological, and yield attributes were recorded at regular intervals. Results revealed that different nutrient management practices had a significant influence on growth, yield attributes, and yield of rice. Number of effective tillers per square meter (215.62), number of grains per panicle (132.52), panicle length (27.02 cm) was recorded higher in LCC-N+NE-P, K. Similarly, a number of grains per panicle and panicle length in LCC-N+NE-P, K were statistically similar to NED. Significantly higher grain yield (5.19 Mt ha-1) and straw yield (6.43 Mt ha-1) were recorded in LCC-N+NE-P, K compared to FAD but statistically similar to NED. Higher Benefit-cost (B:C) ratio (2.41) was obtained in LCC-N + NE – P, K which was statistically similar to FAD and NED. Thus, the combined use of LCC and Nutrient Expert software for nutrient management in rice was found productive and profitable in western Chitwan.

With the aim of identifying the appropriate doses of Zinc in rice for different varieties under various establishment methods, an experiment was carried out in a strip-split plot design with three replications at Agriculture and Forestry University, Rampur, Chitwan during 2015-16. The treatment consists of two crop establishment methods (Transplanted rice (TPR) and Direct Seeded Rice (DSR)) in the vertical strip and two varieties (Hybrid Gorakhnath-509 and Sabitri) in the horizontal strip and four levels of ZnSO4 (0, 15, 30 and 45 kg ha-1) in sub-sub plot. The observations were recorded on growth, yield attributes, grain yield and economics. The research results revealed that the application of ZnSO4 @ 15 Kg ha-1 significantly increased the grain yield of DSR as compared to the non-application of ZnSO4. The higher grain yield of rice was because of increased yield attributes like effective tillers, thousand-grain weight and the number of filled grains per panicle. Crop establishment methods and varieties did not have a significant influence on the grain yield of rice. DSR had a lower cost of cultivation, higher net return and higher benefit-cost ratio as compared to TPR. The variety Sabitri had lower cost of cultivation, higher net return and higher benefit-cost ratio as compared to Gorakhnath-509. Similarly, the application of ZnSO4 @ of 15 Kg ha-1 produced the highest net return and the highest benefit-cost ratio. Therefore, ZnSO4 @ 15 kg ha-1 could be an option for increased yield and net return for DSR in Chitwan.

Grain yield under dry direct seeded rice (DDSR) is primarily limited due to weeds. Therefore, a field experiment was conducted at Rampur, Chitwan during the monsoon season, of 2014. The treatments consisted of two methods of seedbed preparation in the main plot and six weed management methods in the sub-plot arranged in split plot design with four replications. Results revealed that the grain yield of dry-direct seeded rice did not vary due to seedbed preparation methods. However, weedy check treatments reduced more than 92.78 % of grain yield of dry-direct seeded rice compared to weed-free check. The herbicidal treatments were found to be superior for the benefit-cost ratio. Pendimethalin fb Bispyribac sodium recorded the highest net returns of NRs 68.73 thousand ha-1 and the benefit-cost ratio of 2.55. Sequential application of Pendimethalin followed by Bispyribac sodium was proved to be the most efficient weed management method for dry-direct seeded rice.

A field experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of inventive nutrient management practices on the system productivity and profitability of rice-wheat and maize in the rice-based cropping system under conservation agriculture and conventional tillage at Agriculture and Forestry University (AFU), Rampur, Chitwan, Nepal during 2018 - 2019.The experiment was executed in the field in split-split design (for rice), and split plot design (both for wheat and maize) with three replications which included two cropping system (rice-wheat and rice-maize) as main plot treatments, two establishment methods (conservation agriculture and conventional agriculture) as sub plots and four nutrient management practices (100% Recommended dose of fertilizer (RDF), Residue (5 t ha-1) + 75% RDF, Nutrient Expert (NE) dose, brown/green manuring (BM/GM) + 75% RDF) as sub-sub plot treatments. The data on yield and economics were recorded and analyzed by R studio. The yield of wheat and maize were converted into rice equivalent yield (REY) from which system yield was calculated. The research revealed that the rice-maize system had significantly higher REY (12.21 t ha-1), net returns (163.10 thousand NRs. ha-1) over rice-wheat system (8.61 t ha-1 and 68.09 thousand NRs. ha-1, respectively) whereas the crop establishment methods and nutrient management practices have no influence on the REY of the system. NE dose, Residue +75% RDF and 100% RDF produced similar REY. The rice grain yield was found higher (5.28 t ha-1) for conventional tillage than under CA (4.52 t ha-1) however the maize and wheat yield was not affected by the crop establishment methods. Under both establishment methods, NE dose performed better for all crops but NE dose and green manuring produced higher yields under conventional tillage for rice. The residue +75% RDF performed better than 100% RDF for maize and wheat. Rice-maize cropping system was more productive and eventually more profitable than rice-maize cropping system and the under both establishment methods, better yield can be obtained using NE dose, green manuring and residues in the fields with the saving of 25% RDF applied for each crops.

A field experiment was conducted to evaluate the productivity of rice (Oryza sativa L.) and wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) through nitrogen management practices under conservation and conventional agriculture practices during 2012-2013 at Chitwan, Nepal. The experiment on rice was conducted in strip[1]split plot design with two establishment methods (conservation agriculture and conventional practices), two rice varieties (improved variety Sabitri and hybrid Gorakhnath 509), and four nitrogen levels (0, 60, 120, and 180 kg/ha). The experiment on wheat was conducted in a split-plot design with two establishment methods and four nitrogen levels as in rice with Gautam variety. The research result revealed that the grain yield of the rice-wheat system was higher in conservation agriculture (6.6 t/ha). Gorakhnath 509 of rice followed by Gautam variety of wheat had a higher system grain yield (6.8 t/ha) than Sabitri followed by Gautam (6.5 t/ha). The highest system grain yield was obtained from 180 N kg/ha (8.1 t/ha) which was significantly higher than 0 and 60 N kg/ha but was statistically similar to 120 N kg/ha. Thus, in Chitwan and similar niches, the rice-wheat system either Sabitri followed by Gautam or Gorakhnath 509 followed by Gautam variety under conservation agriculture practices by applying 120 N kg/ha can be successfully grown by the farmers.

To improve the yield of spring season maize in the inner terai of Nepal, the effect of increasing fertilizer levels for increasing planting densities on growth, yield attributes, and yield of open-pollinated maize variety were analyzed through the field experimentation in 2019. The treatments included factorial combinations of three planting densities, (a) 55556/ha, (b) 66667/ha, and (c) 83333/ha; and four fertilizers levels (research-based recommendation i.e., 120:60:40 N:P2O5:K2O kg/ha, 144:72:48 N:P2O5:K2O kg/ha, 180:90:60 N:P2O5:K2O kg/ha, and site-specific nutrient management (SSNM) based nutrient expert model recommendation i.e., 140:40:40 N:P2O5:K2O kg/ha) arranged in a split-plot design with three replications. Data on growth, yield attributes, and yield were analyzed by using R Studio. Growth was higher under the highest planting density and higher fertilizer levels applied treatments. The higher (p

Among different factors, tillage and weed management are two important factors that influence remarkably the growth and yield of maize. The present review reveals that Echinochloa colona L. is the most dominant weed species with an importance value index (IVI) of 41 followed by Papaver rhoeas L. (32.6), Descurainia Sophia L. (22.27) and Polygonum aviculare L (16.16) in no-till maize. Wider spacing and initial slow growth of maize during the first 3-4 weeks provides enough opportunity for weeds to invade and offer severe competition, resulting in 60-81% in maize yield losses. The shift of the weed population towards perennial was observed under NT. Species like Xanthium strumarium, Solanum nigrum, Euphorbia helioscopia, Convolvulus arvensis, Sorghum halepense, Digitaria sanguinalis, Sonchus oleraceus and Euphorbia vermiculata were associated with no-till Zea mays. The highest weed seed density was found in conservation agriculture practices (no-tillage, no-fertilizer and no-herbicide use) with the highest seed distributed in 0-1 cm depth followed by 1-3 cm depth. Weed control efficiency of Nicosulfuron @0.90 kg/ha was found the highest (98.8%) followed by Atrazine + Tembotrione + Atrazine (@1 kg/ha + 120 g/ha + 0.5 kg/ha) (98.7%) and Tembotrione + atrazine (@ 120 g/ha + 0.5 kg/ha) (96.5%), therefore were very effective in controlling weed in no-till Zea mays.

A field experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of tillage and nutrient management practices on the performance of subsequent wheat and maize in the rice-based cropping system at Agriculture and Forestry University (AFU), Rampur, Chitwan, Nepal during November 2018-May 2019. The experiment was executed in a split-plot for evaluating two establishment methods viz. (i) zero tillage followed after (fa) conventionally tilled dry direct seeded rice ( ZT fa CT-DDSR) (ii) conventional tillage followed after puddled transplanted rice (CT fa Pu-TPR) and four nutrient management practices, i.e. (i) recommended dose (100% RDF; 80:60:40 and 180:90:60 N:P2O5:K2O kg/ha for wheat and maize respectively), (ii) Residue retention of rice crop @ 5 t/ha + 75% RDF (RR +75% RDF), (iii) Nutrient expert (NE) dose (140:60:45; 150:50:90 N:P2O5:K2O kg/ha for wheat and maize respectively), (iv) Rice residue @ 3.5 t/ha +75% RDF of each crop followed after brown/green manuring of Sesbania in rice (R+75% RDF fa BM/GM) and the treatments were replicated thrice. The data on yield (rice equivalent yield), yield attributes, and economics were recorded and analyzed by R studio. The study revealed that none of the yield attributes and rice equivalent yield of wheat were significantly influenced by the tillage methods but maize had significantly higher number of grains per cob under CT fa Pu-TPR and significantly higher (8.9%) yield under ZT fa CT-DDSR. NE assisted nutrient management practice produced significantly a greater number of spike (281.9 per m2 ) and grains per spike (44.5 and higher straw yield (5.9 t/ha) for wheat crop and also showed better performance for maize as well. Maize had yield advantage of 21% and 14% when planted after BM/GM practices in rice and residue mulched condition respectively. The rice equivalent yield of wheat was 21% and 16% more under NE dose and R+75% RDF fa BM/GM respectively compared to 100% RDF. NE dose was the most profitable in terms of B:C ratio for both the wheat (1.9) and maize (3.0). Hence, tillage methods were indifferent for wheat but ZT fa CT-DDSR was significantly productive for maize and NE dose was the best nutrient management practice for better productivity and profitability for the wheat and maize in the rice-based cropping system in inner Terai of Nepal.

Wheat (Triticum aestivum L), grown under traditional practices becoming less productive and less profitable in Nepal, due to ever-increasing input prices and intensive land preparation. A field experiment was conducted to find alternate practices for enhancing productivity of wheat at the National Wheat Research Program, Bhairahawa during the winter season of 2018/19 and 2019/20. The experiment plot was designed on strip-split plot design with 3 replications. Three tillage methods, surface seeding (SS), zero tillage (ZT), and conventional tillage (CT) were assigned in vertical strips with two levels of crop residue management: residue removed (R0) and residue retention (R50) in horizontal blocks, whereas three levels of nutrient management: recommended dose of NPK (F100), 25% higher dose of NPK (F125) and farmer’s practice (FP) were assigned in subplots. Data regarding growth, yield attributes, and yield were recorded and analyzed by Genstat. In the first year, ZT was better in terms of number of tillers at maximum tillering stage, maximum leaf area index, effective tiller per square meter, number of grain per spike, and straw yield compared to SS and CT; whereas in the second year SS was better in terms of growth, yield attributes and yield as compared to ZT and CT. In the first year, R(0) produced significantly higher straw yield but significantly lower harvest index (HI) than R(50) whereas in second year R(50) produced significantly higher thousand grain weight, grain yield and HI. The application of 25% more nutrients than the recommended dose resulted significantly better most of the growth, yield attributes, and yield during both years. On the average of two years, ZT produced more yield than CT and SS by 26.6% and 3.0% respectively. The short term ZT significantly increased the bulk density as compared to SS and CT. Based on the research results, it can be suggested that the traditional practices of wheat can be replaced by ZT with retention of previous crop residues and the application of 25% more nutrients than the recommended dose.

The study analyzed the factors motivating the farmers for collective action for the management of the Shardikhola Puranchaur Irrigation System of the Kaski district of Nepal in 2019. A cross-sectional data of 184 farmers were collected using a simple random sampling method. A logit regression was used for data analysis. Age of the household head, years of schooling of the household head, presence of fine in monetary terms, number of farmers in a branch of the irrigation system positively motivated farmers in the involvement in the group for the management of the irrigation system. Motivation among farmers for collective action for management of the irrigation system was influenced by a combination of different factors. Therefore, the proper distribution of water at different branches, binding every level of users by law and transparency in the use of the income of the irrigation system must be maintained to achieve the desired results. Int. J. Soc. Sc. Manage. Vol. 8, Issue-1: 285-291

One of the main causes of food insecurity is the timely unavailability of quality seeds for smallholder farmers in developing countries. Improved storage technologies are effective in reducing storage losses. Thus, the objective of this research is to assess the traditional and emerging seed storage structures/materials for the maintenance of seed qualities. The effect of different storage conditions (moisture content of seed at the time of storage, i.e. 12±0.15% and 13.5±0.18%; storage containers such as metal bin, earthen pot, Purdue Improved Crop Storage (PICS) bag, and jute bag) on seed qualities of maize were assessed. The seed was collected from Chitwan, Nepal and a laboratory experiment was conducted at the central seed testing laboratory, seed quality control center (SQQC), Hariharbhawan, Lalitpur. The experiment was done using a two-factor complete randomized design in a four replicates design. Data regarding the seed qualities (seed moisture percentage, germination percentage, root and shoot length, and vigor index) just before store and also at 45, 90, 135, 180, and 240 days after storage (DAS) was performed as per the standard followed by International Seed Testing Association (ISTA). The germination percentage, root, and shoot length decreased with increasing storage duration. The seed stored in the higher moisture level had significantly higher seed moisture throughout the storage duration. Seed stored in the traditional structures (jute bag and earthen pot) had lower seed moisture at 120 and 180 DAS. The seed stored at lower moisture resulted in a higher germination percentage, long root, and shoot length. Up to six months of storage germination of maize seeds stored in the earthen pots, PICS bag, and Jute bags were statistically similar. The traditional storage structures are equally effective for the maintenance of seed quality of maize.

Appropriate combinations of inputs determine the productivity of crops. A field experiment was carried out to evaluate the effect of different combinations of inputs on the yield of winter maize at National Maize Research Program (NMRP), Rampur, Chitwan. The experiment was laid out in randomized complete block design with four replications comprising of six treatments (T1= Hybrid (H) + recommended doses of NPK (RD) + irrigation (I) + high density (HD) (83333 plant ha-1) + improved weed management practice (IWMP), T2=Open pollinated variety (OPV)+RD+I+HD+IWMP, T3=OPV+ farmer’s doses of NPK (FD)+I+HD+IWMP, T4= OPV+FD+rainfed (R)+HD+IWMP, T5=OPV+ FD+ R+low density (LD) (55555 plant ha-1) + IWMP, T6=OPV+FD+R+LD+ farmer’s weed management practice (FWMP). The research result revealed significant variation on the grain yield among the different treatments. The highest grain yield (5357 kg ha-1) was obtained when hybrid maize was grown with recommended dose of fertilizer, higher density, irrigation and improved weed management practices. This treatment was followed by replacement of OPV in the above treatment (4410.77 kg ha-1). The decline in yield due to replacement of OPV from hybrid was 17.67 percent. The percent yield decline from full Package of practices (T1) were 23.01, 47.81, 36.66 and 35.95 when input combinations OPV+FD+I+ HD+IWMP, OPV + FD+R+HD+IWMP, OPV+FD+R+LD+IWMP and OPV+FD+R+LD+ FWMP respectively were used..The contrast for grain yield between hybrid vs. OPV, RD vs. FD and Irrigated vs. Rainfed were significant. Therefore, present investigation showed hybrid maize, recommended dose of fertilizer and irrigation were the most important inputs for improving maize productivity in winter season in Chitwan like climatic condition.

Puddled transplanted rice (TPR) has been gradually replaced by direct-seeded rice (DSR) because of its low labor requirements and less cost of cultivation. Whether and how DSR can be as productive and profitable as TPR has received widespread attention. Thus a comprehensive analysis was made to quantify the effects of direct seeding on rice yield and profitability under different tillage, residues, varieties, and nitrogen management options. The results revealed that, overall, the yield of DSR was 2.4% lower than that of TPR due to a significant reduction in the number of grains per panicle and a significant increment of sterility percentage. However, the yield loss of DSR relative to TPR was highly variable depending on different tillage and residue management options, ranging from yield advantage of +6.0% to yield penalty of 16.0%. The yield gap between CT-DSR and TPR could be narrowed by not incorporating the residues while more yield could be obtained with the residues retention on the ZT-DSR. Among the different forms of the DSR, ZT with residue retention and CT without residue retention were better in terms of profitability. Adoption of improved or hybrid varieties played the less important role in yield gain and loss under DSR. With respect to nitrogen levels, the yield penalty was eliminated by the higher nitrogen application (>120 kg N ha-1) resulted in the yield advantage of 6.6% for the DSR as compared to the puddled TPR. In conclusion, DSR could produce comparable yields and more profits to TPR, but special attention should be given to optimizing management practices to improve DSR yield performance and narrow down the yield gap. Therefore, there is an urgent need to test, verify, and scale-out the DSR technologies across the different agro-ecologies of Nepal through a farmer-centered partnership among the international institutions, public and private sectors of Nepal.

A field experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of land management practices and residual effect of nutrient management practices of rice on the performance of subsequent wheat crop in the rice-wheat cropping system in Agriculture and Forestry University (AFU), Rampur, Chitwan, Nepal during June 2018-March 2019. The experiment was executed in a split-plot, included two establishment methods viz. (i) conventional tilled dry direct-seeded rice followed by (fb) zero tillage wheat (CT-DDSR fb ZT) (ii) puddled transplanted rice followed by conventional tillage wheat (Pu-TPR fb CT) as main plot treatments, and four nutrient management practices: (i) 100% recommended dose (100% RDF; 150:45:45 and 80:60:40 kg N, P2O5, and K2O ha-1 respectively for rice and wheat), (ii) Residue retention @ 5 t ha-1 of wheat on rice fb residue of rice on wheat + 75% RDF of each crop (RR +75%RDF), (iii) Nutrient expert (NE) dose (140:56:53; 140:60:45 kg N, P2O5, and K2O ha-1 for rice and wheat respectively), (iv) Brown/green manuring of Sesbania in rice fb rice residue @ 3.5 t ha-1 in wheat +75% RDF of each crop (BM/GM fb R+75% RDF) as subplot treatments with three replications. The variety of wheat ‘Bijay’ was sown @120 kg ha-1 with spacing 20 cm × continuous. The data on phenology, yield, yield attributes, and economics were recorded and analyzed by R studio. The study revealed that none of the yield attributes and yield of wheat were significantly influenced by the establishment methods. Significantly more effective tillers (281.94 m-2) and grains per spike (44.48) and higher straw yield (5.95 t ha-1) were recorded under NE dose. The grain yield of wheat was 21% and 16% more under NE dose and BM/GM fb R+75% RDF respectively compared to 100% RDF. CT-DDSR fb ZT wheat had slightly less net returns (NRs. 4523 ha-1) than Pu-TPR fb CT-wheat. NE dose was the most profitable. Hence, rice establishment methods were indifferent but NE dose was the best nutrient management practice for better production and profitability for the wheat in the rice-wheat system.

A field experiment was conducted during the spring season of 2020 to evaluate the different weed management practices in dry directed seeded spring rice under Prime Minister Agriculture Modernization Project (PMAMP) super zone at Baniyani, Jhapa. The experiment was laid out in randomized complete block design (RCBD) with seven weed management related treatments and three replications. The treatments consisted of pre-emergence application of Pretilachlor, pre-emergence application of Pendimethalin, pre-emergence application of Pretilachlor fb post-emergence butachlor pre-emergence application of Pendimethalin fb post-emergence Bispyribac Na, Sesbania co-culture along with pre-emergence application of Pendimethalin along with two control treatments (weedy free and weedy check). The rice variety Hardinath-1 was used in the experiment. Data regarding the weed flora, weed density, weed dry weight, growth, yield attributes and yield were recorded and analyzed. The highest number of effective tillers per m2 (371.51) and number of grains per panicle (145.43) were obtained in Pendimethalin treated plot and were statistically as par with Sesbania co-culture + Pendimethalin (363.44 m-2 and 140.54 respectively). Higher and statistically similar grain yield was observed in Sesbania co- culture + Pendimethalin (4870kg ha-1) and Pendimethalin treated plots (4780 kg ha-1). The experiment concluded that there was reduction in yield by 66.78 percent due to presence of weed as compared to weed free. Pre-emergence application of Pendimethalin was most beneficial in terms of gross returns, net returns and B:C ratio compared to other weed management practices and hence was most economical.

A survey entitled “Assessment of effectiveness of Shallow tubewell irrigation in Dhanusha district” was carried to seek the status of Shallow tubewell irrigation and its effectiveness in agriculture. A total of 30 respondents were selected on the basis of simple random sampling method who uses shallow tubewell for irrigation. Major occupation of 77% of population of survey area was agriculture and about 73% of households were doing rainfed agriculture before installation of shallow tubewell. A total of 201.23 bigha of land was irrigated and 250 families were benefited from shallow tubewell irrigation. The area under cultivation and production of crops was also found to be increased after installation of shallow tubewell. The average annual production of cereals and vegetables after use of shallow tubewell was 6.01 ton and 1.08 ton respectively. The monoculture system of cropping was changed to multiple cropping system after installing shallow tubewell. Farmers now cultivated 1-5 types of crops before which 1-2 types before shallow tubewell irrigation. Rice, wheat and vegetables were cultivated in 1258 katha, 582 katha and 32 katha of land respectively before installing shallow tubewell but after installation cultivated in 1330 katha, 697 katha and 232 katha of land respectively. Similarly, productivity of rice. increased from 95.96 to 142.08 ton, wheat from 29.98 to 46.67 ton and vegetables from 7.52 to 27.9 ton after use of shallow tubewell irrigation. Poor supply of electricity was the major problem with the index value of 0.89 followed by canal problems.

The study examined the resource use efficiency of maize production in rainfed and irrigated conditions in Kaski, Nepal. It focused specially on the production function of maize, resource use efficiency and socioeconomic characteristics of the farmers. A well-structured interview schedule was used in this study. Out of the 368 households interviewed, 165 farmers cultivated maize and a total of 157 farmers (59 from irrigated and 98 from rainfed) provided useful data. The data analysis was done by using Microsoft excel and SPSS. Cobb-Douglas production function was used to determine the resource use efficiency of maize production. Compared to rainfed system, maize productivity in irrigated system was higher despite the use of fewer input implying irrigation. Increase in seed use by 10% increased the yield by 1.9% in case of rainfed system and 0.05% in case of the irrigated system. The major implication for the study is that farmers should make proper utilization of their resources to achieve higher level of resource use efficiency.

Maize cultivation is the one the major farm activities among Nepalese farmers. Basically, in the rural hills of Nepal like Okhaldhunga, it dominates any other crop production. The study was conducted for comparative assessment of economics, marketing and identification of major problems of maize seed and grain production in the hilly eastern district, Okhaldhunga during June of 2017. The data were obtained through the interview of 66 producers (33 each of maize grain and seed producers) with a pre-tested semi-structured questionnaire. Descriptive statistics and parametric tests (-test, t-test) were applied. Both the grain and the seed producers were similar in terms of socio-demographic characteristics, marketing accessibilities but the seed producers were significantly benefited from the training, the extension services, credit facilities despite having 0.14 ha lesser landholding than grain producers. The inputs (manures, fertilizers and the seed) contributed 48% and 50% of the total cost incurred for grain and seed production respectively and the pre-sowing and sowing activities contributed more than 77% of cost in both cases. Despite higher cost for seed production (NRs. 24,969 more than grain production), the benefit-cost ratio of seed production was found higher (1.31) than grain production (1.05). Only 24% of the total harvest was processed and marketed as seed and using optimum quantity (66% middle portion of the cob) for seed production could further increase the income by 23.35%, the improved B:C ratio being 1.51 . The major production problems were scarce farm labor followed by lack of infrastructures while low seasonal price followed by low volume of production ranked the first and second most important marketing related problems.

This study was conducted in the Ilam district of Nepal to analyse resource use efficiency and economies of scale of ginger farming. A total of 160 farmers and 20 traders (collector, wholesaler and retailers) from the study area were randomly selected as the sample. The pre-tested systematic questionnaire, fitted in KoBo Toolbox, was used to obtain the primary data through face to face household interviews. The production function of ginger farming was in increasing return to scale, with a score of 1.1356. The result showed that expenditure on seed and labour was over utilised. Except for these two, other inputs of ginger farming were underutilised. Economies of scale for ginger production was 44 quintal in production quantity and 5.68 ropani (1 hectare=19.66 ropani) in area. To obtain economies of scale, ginger production and size must be increased by around double the present context. The study concluded that to increase the profitability of ginger farming, resources must be utilised in optimum conditions, and production scale must be increased.

Agro-morphological traits serve as an indirect selection criteria for developing new cultivars with superior performance ability. In order to study variability of agro-morphological traits of exotic barley genotypes under normal and late sown conditions, a field experiment was conducted at the research field of Institute of Agriculture and Animal Science, Chitwan, Nepal in 2015. Altogether, 13 genotypes of barley were sown under two factor factorial RCBD with three replications in two dates. Normal sowing was done on 29 Nov 2014 while late sowing was done on 1 Jan 2015. Agro-morphological traits were found to be varying significantly in late sowing condition as compared to normal one. The mean number of days to booting and heading reduced by 15.19% and 9.64%, respectively in late sown condition. Similarly, plant height reduced by 19.53%, peduncle length by 16.62%, flag leaf width by 42.87%, flag leaf area by 36.44% and FL-1 leaf area by 36.51% in late sown condition. Biomass, grain yield and harvest index were also found to be reduced by 39.66%, 69.77% and 46.48%, respectively for late sowing condition. Nepalese landrace Soluwa performed better in normal sown condition while exotic genotype SBYT 14-1 performed better in late sown condition. SBYT 14-27 and SBYT 14-38 genotypes exhibited stable yield in both sowing conditions. Stability attribute provides an avenue for further study of such promising genotypes from agronomic and breeding perspectives under varying edaphic and agronomic conditions, and also open up the possibility of developing best performing cultivar of barley for lower plain region of the country.

The weed is a major constraint of dry-direct seeded rice (DDSR) due to change in establishment methods and shifting weed flora towards competitive grasses and sedges. To minimize the weed density, its species and dry weight with brown manuring and for optimizing the yield of DDSR, the experiment was conducted during monsoon season of 2014 at Chitwan, Nepal. The experiment was done using a strip plot design to find the optimum seed rate and killing date of Sesbania under rice-Sesbania co-culture. Among different seed rates (60, 80, 100 kg ha-1) and knocking down days (21, 28, 35 & 42 DAS) of Sesbania, the optimum seed rate of Sesbania was 102 kg ha-1 and killing date was 32 days. The individual plot size was 5 x 4 m2. The growing of Sesbania with 100 kg seeds ha-1 along with its knocked down at 28 DAS was seen best to minimize the weeds having better performance of rice. The experiment clearly demonstrated the importance of brown manuring on effective control of weeds and on grain yield of rice under dry direct seeded rice. Int. J. Appl. Sci. Biotechnol. Vol 6(4): 359-365

The research was conducted to study the comparison of farmers’ weed management practice in rice with chemical control and Sesbania co-culture. The experiment was laid out in Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with three replications and five different weed management practices. The five treatments were Farmers’ practice (two hand weeding first at 28 DAS and another at 40 DAS), Chemical practice (Bispyribac sodium as post emergence @ 25 g a.i. ha -1 at 25 DAS), Sesbania co-culture (100 kg Sesbania ha -1 and knocking down at 28 DAS), Weed free (Hand removal of weeds at 10 days’ interval) and Weedy check (No weed management). The individual plot size was 5 x 4 m 2 . The Sesbania co-culture and farmers’ practice were found more or less similar performance for all observed parameters but as better as compared to weedy check and chemical treatment. Sesbania co-culture was found less costly than farmers’ practice for weed management. The experiment clearly demonstrated the importance of brown manuring on effective control of weeds in rice field under dry direct seeded rice. Int. J. Appl. Sci. Biotechnol. Vol 6(3): 265-269

A study on incidence of mycoflora was carried out by blotter method in wheat seeds. Forty seed sample of wheat (Triticum aestivum) was collected, ten varieties/genotypes each from Chitwan; Kaski; Banke and Lalitpur. The study was done at Seed Quality Control Center, Hariharbhawan, Lalitpur, Nepal, during August to December, 2013, with the objective of determining fungi associated with wheat seeds in-vitro. A total of eighteen species of fungi within thirteen genera were detected. Alternaria alternata and Bipolaris sorokiniana were predominant in all the varieties/genotypes and locations. Percentage frequency and type of fungi detected varied with variety and location. Among all fungi, mean frequency (76.00%) and relative abundance (55.15%) were highest of Alternaria alternata. Among the seeds of different location, B. sorokiniana was found highest from the seed of Banke and A. alternata from seeds of Lalitpur. Lowest percentage frequency of fungi was found in genotype BL 4009 (3.06%) from Chitwan and in variety Nepal 297 (6.25%) from Kaski, and highest in genotype BL 1177 (16.40%) from Banke. Nepalese wheat seeds appeared prevailed with many pathogenic fungi. Therefore, selection of wheat seeds from resistant varieties and areas with lower temperature and relative humidity, and their treatment is suggested to reduce disease and increase yield.Journal of the Institute of Agriculture and Animal Science. Vol. 33-34, 2015, Page: 27-34

A field experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of tillage practices, residue management and cropping system on soil properties at NMRP, Rampur, Chitwan from November 2015 to April 2016. The experiment was laid on Strip split design with combination of 12 different treatments i.e, zero tillage & conventional tillage as main plot in the strip, residue retention & residue removal as sub-plot factor and maize – wheat, maize + soybean – wheat & soybean – wheat cropping system as sub-sub plot factor. Three replications of the treatments were made. Soil sample before experiment and after harvest of wheat was taken (0-15cm). The experiment showed significant effect of zero tillage on organic carbon (2.169%) and on total soil nitrogen (0.112 %). Zero tillage with retention of residues is valuable tool for the conservation agriculture and helps in sustainability of soil however long-term research for the tillage management and residue retention should be conducted to highlight the major effects on change in properties of soil.Int. J. Appl. Sci. Biotechnol. Vol 6(2): 164-168

A field experiment was conducted in sub humid climate of inner terai of Nepal to determine the productivity and economics of rice under direct seeded and transplanted methods under different nutrient management in strip plot design with three replications in 2013, rainy season. The treatment consisted of three tillage methods, conventional tillage direct seeded rice, unpuddled transplanted rice and Puddled transplanted rice and five nutrient management practices Recommended Nitrogen(N), Phosphorous(P) and Potassium(K), 100:30:30 Kg NPK ha-1; Leaf color chart based N + Recommended PK; Farmers’ Practice, 48.30:34.50:0.00 Kg NPK ha-1; 0N + Recommended PK and 150% of Recommended NPK. The result revealed that grain and straw yield were not significant due to crop establishment methods. LCC based N application yield was comparable with 150% of Rec. NPK and Rec. NPK. Saving N on LCC based N management with 41.56 Kg ha-1 and 9.44 Kg N ha-1 over 150% of recommended NPK recommended NPK respectively. Adoption of CT-DSR reduced the total cost of cultivation by 30.13% and B:C ratio by 45.95% over P-TPR. The lower cost, higher benefit and the same production, revealed that LCC based N management under CT-DSR was the best management practices over the conventional P-TPR.

Improving nutrient management through site specific nutrient management (SSNM) can increase grain yield and maintain appropriate yield attributes per unit of fertilizer applied through harmonized uptake, utilization and metabolism of major nutrients. On-farm experiments were conducted from 2011-2013 at Sunawal, Nawalparasi. SSNM dose was calculated by accounting for indigenous nutrient supply, yield goal, nutrient demand and fertilizer efficiency. SSNM decreased nitrogen and phosphorus application by 4 and 28% while demanded 80% more potassium and increased grain yield by 6% over recommended practice. As compared to the farmers fertility management practice (FFP), SSNM increased grain yield by 35%. Reducing 25% of SSNM dose was equally effective as recommended practice of nutrient application. Only improving the potassium application (+32 kg ha-1) on FFP, yield was increased by 17%. Leaf color charts (LCC) improve nitrogen management and proved as crucial component of SSNM as 0.3 t ha-1 more yield over three split nitrogen applications of SSNM dose.

A field experiment with three wheat varieties at different sowing dates on two crop establishment methods was accomplished to identify the optimum sowing date at AFU Rampur during winter season of 2014/2015. Three wheat varieties namely: Tillotama, Danfe and Vijay sown on three dates: 14 th November, 29 th November, and 14 th December under two crop establishment practices: Conservational and conventional agriculture were evaluated with strip –split plot design in three replications. The field data onyield attributes and yields were collected. Earlier sowing on 14 th November gave the highest yield (3427.15 kg ha -1 ), total dry matter (8154.44 kg ha -1 ), with longest days to crop maturation (133.11 days). In case of varieties, Vijay gave the highest grain yield (3458.61 kg ha -1 ) and total dry weight (4456.11 and 8832.42 kg ha -1 respectively) with earliest days to heading and maturity. The straw yield was the highest for 29 th November sowing (5821 kg ha -1 ) and for Danfe variety (5756 kg ha -1 ). Vijay variety recorded the highest test weight (43.60 g) and highest harvest index (35.89%) even though with the lowest effective tillers per square meter (320.83), it proved to be the most promising variety. Int. J. Appl. Sci. Biotechnol. Vol 5(2): 250-255

A field experiment was conducted at the Agronomy farm of Institute of Agriculture and Animal Science (IAAS), Rampur during winter season of 2014/2015 to find out the response of wheat varieties under different sowing dates. There was 9 treatments consisting three date of sowing (November 14, November29 and December 14) in main plot and three varieties namely Tillotama, Danfe and Vijay in sub-plot and were arranged in split plot design with three replications. The grain yield was significantly higher (3.09 tha-1) at November 14 whereas highest straw yield was recorded for November 29 sown wheat (5.61 t ha-1). Effective tiller (414) and number of grain per spike (34.34) were highest for November 29 sown wheat. The late sown wheat had more sterile floret (42.65%) while early sown wheat had highest thousand grain weight (51.23 g). Danfe had highest straw yield (5.87 t/ha). Effective tiller/m2 (419) and sterility percentage (43.35%) of Danfe was highest. Number of grains per spike (37.89) of Tillotama was highest and thousand grain weight (57.09 g) of Bijay was found highest. The grain yield of Bijay (3.30tha-1) was highest when it was sown at November 29. Int J Appl Sci Biotechnol, Vol 4(1): 27-31

Forty seed sample of wheat (Triticum aestivum) were collected from four locations viz. Chitwan, Kaski, Banke and Lalitpur and tested by blotter method at laboratory during 2013 for determining fungal pathogens associated with wheat seeds in Nepal. Eighteen species representing thirteen genera of fungi were recovered from the seed. Alternaria alternata and Bipolaris sorokiniana were predominant in all the varieties/genotypes from all the locations, where B. sorokiniana was strongly pathogenic in wheat crop. Percentage frequency and type of fungi detected varied with variety and locations. Bipolaris sorokiniana was highest (64.40%) in Banke than remaining three locations. Seeds of Chitwan had lowest percentage (5.50%) of seed infection as compared to other locations. Relative abundance of Alternaria alternata (55.10%) was highest as it was the most prevalent component of seed borne mycoflora, followed by Bipolaris sorokiniana (34.69%) and Cladosporium herbarum (7.19%). Differences in quantity of precipitation and relative humidity might be the possible reason for variation in frequency and type of fungi detected in wheat seeds of four locations.

On-farm experiment was conducted in eight farmers’ field, of Khasyoli village development committee (952 to 1415 masl), Nepal, from April to September, 2011 to address the major constraint (nutrient management) to maize production through site-specific nutrient management (SSNM) as this approach is popular among scientists. The experiment comprised three nutrient omission plots (0N, 0P, and 0K), an ample NPK plot, and a farmers’ fertilization practice (FFP) plot, arranged in randomized complete block design. Farmers planted open pollinated variety ( Manakamana-3 ) and managed in their way. Field-specific NPK application rates were calculated by considering nutrient demand, indigenous NPK supply and recovery efficiency of fertilizers. Grain yield in FFP (2.32 Mg/ha) and 0N (1.79 Mg/ha) plots differed significantly from each other and rest of the treatments, but was statistically similar among 0P (3.18 Mg/ha), 0K (3.40 Mg/ha) and ample NPK (3.38 Mg/ha) plots. Post-harvest grain and stover analysis revealed that indigenous NPK supply (20-71 kg N, 19-68 kg P 2 O 5 and 51-164 kg K 2 O/ha) of soil vary among the farmers’ field. Moreover, soil was poor in indigenous N supply (42 kg/ha), but rich in indigenous P 2 O 5 (35 kg/ha) and K 2 O (90 kg/ha) supply, on an average. As per the principles of SSNM, the initial fertilizer recommendation made can vary from 40-222 kg N, 0- 93 kg P 2 O 5 , and 0-50 kg K 2 O/ha. On an average, farmers may apply no or lower dose of P 2 O 5 (18 kg/ha) and K 2 O (3 kg/ha) but need to significantly increase dose of N (143 kg/ha) fertilizer for enhancing soil and maize productivity. Int J Appl Sci Biotechnol, Vol 3(2): 227-231 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/ijasbt.v3i2.12538