Wide-ranging promotion of liming and organic manures can be the crucial means of boosting cropping yield coupled with protecting soil health from further degradation caused by indiscriminate chemical fertilization in the region, including its vast Barind tract.
Organic matter creates a positive soil environment from which plants can uptake nutrients from applied chemical fertilizers. It increases uptake of applied chemical fertilizers by the plants which contributes to increasing crop productivity by reducing the toxic flow of active chemical fertilizers to the environment.
These were ascertained through different experimental plots of wheat, lentil, potato and chickpea at many locations in Rajshahi, Chapainawabganj and Naogaon districts recently.
The cash crops were cultivated in two separate demonstration plots, one experiment and other farmers' practice, to evaluate the effects of liming and organic matter on soil properties, soil health and growth traits.
The field-level experiments conducted by the Rajshahi regional office of Soil Resource Development Institute (SRDI) showed better yields than that of the conventional plots.
Dr Nurul Islam, Principal Scientific Officer of SRDI, said each of the farmers was given all sorts of impute support including fertilizer, labour, water for irrigation and technical knowhow for farming crops on one bigha of experimental plot. Potato yield was 115 mounds per bigha in experimental plot against 90 mounds of farmers practice while the yield of chickpea was 13 mounds of experimental plot against six mounds of conventional system, said farmer Saiful Islam of Badhair village under Tanore upazila.
"I have harvested nine mounds of lentil from the experiment plot while six mounds from his own conventional system," said Shariful Alam, another farmer of Patari village under Shapaher upazila, adding that the liming and organic matter system is cost-effective.
The farmers applied half-rated chemical fertilizer along with optimum organic fertilizer and bio-pesticide in their fields in order to make them financially benefited side by side with protecting the soil health.
Soil Scientist Dr Nurul Islam said soil organic matter is a key factor in maintaining long-term soil fertility since it is the reservoir of metabolic energy, which drives soil biological processes involved in nutrient availability. Main objective of the experiment was to achieve more broad based and sustainable outcomes in soil health, food security, environment management and economic opportunity in the region.
"We have provided technical knowledge on proper and effective application of organic methods in farming fields to the targeted farmers," he added.
Most of the soils in the Barind area have less than 1.5 percent and some soils contain even less than 1 percent organic matter whereas a good soil should have at least 2.5 percent organic matter.
He defined that organic matter supplies plant nutrients, increases water holding capacity of soil, reduces residual negative effects of fertilizers and pesticides. It makes the crops more tolerant to diseases, insects and also prevents soil erosion.
Dr Islam said bringing all the farming fields under liming and organic fertilization is a big challenge but there is no way but face the challenge to protect the soil health.
