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We researched the influence of soil cultivation and fertilization on changes of nitrate, ammonium and inorganic nitrogen content in soil during the monitored vegetation periods (2004/2005 – 2005/2006). This experiment was realized on experimental bases of Slovak University of Agriculture in Nitra – Dolná Malanta on the winter/summer wheat (Triticum aestivum), variety Bonita, with red clover as its before-crop. In the field trial we used two types of tillage, B1 – conventional tillage up to the depth of 0,25 m and B2 – disc ploughing up to 0,15 m, with three variants of fertilization, 0 – unfertilized control, PH – fertilization according to its content in soil and PZ – fertilization according to its content in soil + plough down of post harvest residues. Samples of the soil were taken from the two soil depth (0,0- 0,3 m and 0,3-0,6 m) and in each vegetation period there were 8 takings of soil samples in four repetitions. During monitored vegetation period this dynamics was changeable. The content of nitrate nitrogen in the soil in autumn was about 40 % higher than content of ammonium nitrate. This tendency changed in spring, when the average content of ammonium nitrogen was higher than the content of nitrate nitrogen on average about 60 %. The cultivation had significant influence on dynamics of inorganic nitrogen. The average content of inorganic nitrogen in conventional tillage up to the depth of 0,25 m was 8,43 mg.kg-1 and in disc ploughing it was 7,60 mg.kg-1. The influence of fertilization on changes of inorganic nitrogen was significantly important. Monitored ways of fertilization within the content of nitrates in the soil had the following averages: in unfertilized soil 7,48 mg.kg-1, in fertilized soil NPK 8,20 mg.kg-1 and in the soil fertilized with plough down of post harvest residues 8,37 mg.kg-1. In the first and second variety of soil cultivation we found out a low increase of average concentration of nitrates in the fertilized soil in comparison with unfertilized one. High significant influence on dynamics of nitrate nitrogen in the soil had date of sample takings and also depth. In the first depth (0,0-0,3 m) the level of nitrate nitrogen was 9,18 mg.kg-1 and in the second depth (0,3-0,6 m) it was 6,85 mg.kg-1.

The aim of this work was to investigate the effects of different rates of organic fertilizers (farmyard manure and bio sludge) on occurrence of soil organisms with focus to species of family Carabidae. During 2001-2003, samples of biological material were collected using the earth trap method. Samples were taken from five treatments (i) unfertilized, (ii) 25 t ha-1 farmyard manure, (iii) 50 t ha-1 bio sludge, (iv) 50 t ha-1 farmyard manure, (v) 100 t ha-1 bio sludge) which cover area of 9 000 m2 at experimental farm of Slovak Agricultural University Kolíňany. Totally 59 054 individuals of soil edaphon belong to 23 epigeic groups was collected from which 25 species totally 21 189 individuals belong to the target group Carabidae. The attributes of specific identity according Jaccard (IA) ranged from 45.45 to 71.43 % and those of dominant identity (ID) from 94.20 to 97.72 %. The attributes of diversity (d) achieved a level from 0.5406 to 0.8986. Harpalus rufipes (De Geer, 1774) occurring on arid to damp soil, mostly in light places, was determined as the dominant species. The attributes of individual treatments are influenced by the quantity of organic mater inputs into soil that affects the formation of well-defined communities with the characteristic species composition. A comparison of individual treatments in terms of the occurrence of zooedaphon showed that application of 100 t ha-1 bio sludge create the most suitable soil condition for zooedaphon development.

The pollution is hot issue of current era in world and the current study was carried to explore impacts of brickkilns' emanations on physiochemical properties of agricultural lands from District Bhimber of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Pakistan. In this research, various edaphic characteristics: pH, soil organic matter, organic carbon, water holding capacity, cation exchange capacity and heavy metal contamination in soils nearby of brickkilns were determined. The pH of soil ranged from 5.55 to 7.50, soil organic matter was 0.35-0.90% and organic carbon content was 0.65-1.40%. The water holding capacity ranged from 2.10 to 3.20 mgL-1 and carbon exchange capacity was 1250 to 4202 meq/100g. The contamination profile of heavy metal depicted that Pb showed highest conc. 0.065 mg/g followed by Co (0.053 mg/g) and Ni with 0.52 mg/g in the soil. Pb and Cr had high conc. in soil samples around brickkilns due to burning of coal and rubber tyres as fuel. The conc. of sulphate and nitrate ranged from 0.90±0.50 mol L-1 to 4.25±0.65 mol L-1 and 2.30±0.50 mol L-1 to 6.55±0.25 mol L-1, respectively. The fertility of agriculture lands was depicted that edaphic properties were directly related while nutritive features were inversely commensurate to distance from brickkilns. The research proved that emanations of brickkilns causes severe impact on quality of agriculture land, plant growth and its yield. Hence, reclamation measures should be taken to mitigate and/or eradicate nuisance of brickkilns emanations by using environmental friendly strategies.

In arid and semiarid regions and under rainfed conditions, water availability is one of the principal ecological constraints that hinder agriculture’s sustainability. The super absorbent polymer (agricultural) is water-absorbing and is cross-linked to absorb aqueous solutions through bonding with water molecules. It is a new approach to water management under water-stressed conditions to conserve soil moisture in the active rooting zone of crops by reducing the evaporation, deep percolation, and runoff losses. Agricultural hydrogels are water retention granules which swell their original size to numerous intervals when they come in contact with water. It can absorb and retain a huge amount of moisture under plentiful rainfall and irrigation events and release it back to the soil for mitigating crop water demand when the rhizosphere zone dries up under drought conditions. It plays multifarious roles in agriculture including soil-water retainer, nutrient and pesticide carriers, seed coating, soil erosion reducer, and food additives. It has the extraordinary ability in improving different physicochemical, hydrophysical, and biological properties of soil, simultaneously decreasing irrigation frequency, enhancing the water and nutrient use efficiencies, and increasing the yield and quality of the field, plantation, ornamental, and vegetable crops. These biodegradable materials are nontoxic to the soil, crop, and environment. Hence, the addition of the hydrogel polymer will be a promising and feasible technological tool for augmenting crop productivity under moisture stressed conditions.

Objectives: A field trial was carried out in Kashmir valley to determine the persistence of fenazaquin 10EC (Magister) in Red Delicious variety of apple at recommended (0.004%) and double the recommended (0.008%) application rates. Methods: The spray was conducted one month prior to harvest. The plants treated with simple tap water were treated as control. Samples were collected at 0, 3, 7, 10, 15, 20 days and harvest. The procedure followed for extraction and cleanup was that of Luke et al. (1985) modified by Sharma (2007) and the final analysis was carried out on a Varian 450 (Walnut Creek, CA, USA) gas chromatograph (GLC) equipped with Thermionic Specific detector (TSD). Results: After computation of data, the initial deposit was recorded as 3.18 ± 0.03 μg g − 1 and 6.98 ± 0.08 μg g − 1 at two concentrations, respectively. Fenazaquin (0.004%) dissipated to 96.91 per cent in 20 days after application and was not detectable beyond this period. Fenazaquin (0.008%) however, persisted upto 30 days recording 95.84 per cent dissipation at that time. Conclusions: The progressive dissipation of fenazaquin (0.004%) and fenazaquin (0.008%) residues down to their tolerance limits suggested a waiting period of 18.55 and 30.49 days with a half-life period of 3.62 and 4.12 days, respectively. The terminal residue of fenazaquin at the lower rate was below maximum residue limit (MRL) set by European Union, however above MRL at the higher rate.

Globally, many developing countries are facing silent epidemics of nutritional deficiencies in human beings and animals. The lack of diversity in diet, i.e., cereal-based crops deficient in mineral nutrients is an additional threat to nutritional quality. The present review accounts for the significance of biofortification as a process to enhance the productivity of crops and also an agricultural solution to address the issues of nutritional security. In this endeavor, different innovative and specific biofortification approaches have been discussed for nutrient enrichment of field crops including cereals, pulses, oilseeds and fodder crops. The agronomic approach increases the micronutrient density in crops with soil and foliar application of fertilizers including amendments. The biofortification through conventional breeding approach includes the selection of efficient genotypes, practicing crossing of plants with desirable nutritional traits without sacrificing agricultural and economic productivity. However, the transgenic/biotechnological approach involves the synthesis of transgenes for micronutrient re-translocation between tissues to enhance their bioavailability. Soil microorganisms enhance nutrient content in the rhizosphere through diverse mechanisms such as synthesis, mobilization, transformations and siderophore production which accumulate more minerals in plants. Different sources of micronutrients viz. mineral solutions, chelates and nanoparticles play a pivotal role in the process of biofortification as it regulates the absorption rates and mechanisms in plants. Apart from the quality parameters, biofortification also improved the crop yield to alleviate hidden hunger thus proving to be a sustainable and cost-effective approach. Thus, this review article conveys a message for researchers about the adequate potential of biofortification to increase crop productivity and nourish the crop with additional nutrient content to provide food security and nutritional quality to humans and livestock.

Agricultural sustainability is of foremost importance for maintaining high food production. Irresponsible resource use not only negatively affects agroecology, but also reduces the economic profitability of the production system. Among different resources, soil is one of the most vital resources of agriculture. Soil fertility is the key to achieve high crop productivity. Maintaining soil fertility and soil health requires conscious management effort to avoid excessive nutrient loss, sustain organic carbon content, and minimize soil contamination. Though the use of chemical fertilizers have successfully improved crop production, its integration with organic manures and other bioinoculants helps in improving nutrient use efficiency, improves soil health and to some extent ameliorates some of the constraints associated with excessive fertilizer application. In addition to nutrient supplementation, bioinoculants have other beneficial effects such as plant growth-promoting activity, nutrient mobilization and solubilization, soil decontamination and/or detoxification, etc. During the present time, high energy based chemical inputs also caused havoc to agriculture because of the ill effects of global warming and climate change. Under the consequences of climate change, the use of bioinputs may be considered as a suitable mitigation option. Bioinoculants, as a concept, is not something new to agricultural science, however; it is one of the areas where consistent innovations have been made. Understanding the role of bioinoculants, the scope of their use, and analysing their performance in various environments are key to the successful adaptation of this technology in agriculture.

In modern days, rapid urbanisation, climatic abnormalities, water scarcity and quality degradation vis-à-vis the increasing demand for food to feed the growing population necessitate a more efficient agriculture production system. In this context, farming with zeolites, hydrated naturally occurring aluminosilicates found in sedimentary rocks, which are ubiquitous and environment friendly, has attracted attention in the recent past owing to multidisciplinary benefits accrued from them in agricultural activities. The use of these minerals as soil ameliorants facilitates the improvement of soil’s physical and chemical properties as well as alleviates heavy metal toxicity. Additionally, natural and surface-modified zeolites have selectivity for major essential nutrients, including ammonium (NH4+), phosphate (PO42−), nitrate (NO3−), potassium (K+) and sulphate (SO42−), in their unique porous structure that reduces nutrient leaching. The slow-release nature of zeolites is also beneficial to avail nutrients optimally throughout crop growth. These unique characteristics of zeolites improve the fertilizer and water use efficiency and, subsequently, diminish environmental pollution by reducing nitrate leaching and the emissions of nitrous oxides and ammonia. The aforesaid characteristics significantly improve the growth, productivity and quality of versatile crops, along with maximising resource use efficiency. This literature review highlights the findings of previous studies as well as the prospects of zeolite application for achieving sustenance in agriculture without negotiating the output.

Intensive agriculture is based on the use of high-energy inputs and quality planting materials with assured irrigation, but it has failed to assure agricultural sustainability because of creation of ecological imbalance and degradation of natural resources. On the other hand, intercropping systems, also known as mixed cropping or polyculture, a traditional farming practice with diversified crop cultivation, uses comparatively low inputs and improves the quality of the agro-ecosystem. Intensification of crops can be done spatially and temporally by the adoption of the intercropping system targeting future need. Intercropping ensures multiple benefits like enhancement of yield, environmental security, production sustainability and greater ecosystem services. In intercropping, two or more crop species are grown concurrently as they coexist for a significant part of the crop cycle and interact among themselves and agro-ecosystems. Legumes as component crops in the intercropping system play versatile roles like biological N fixation and soil quality improvement, additional yield output including protein yield, and creation of functional diversity. But growing two or more crops together requires additional care and management for the creation of less competition among the crop species and efficient utilization of natural resources. Research evidence showed beneficial impacts of a properly managed intercropping system in terms of resource utilization and combined yield of crops grown with low-input use. The review highlights the principles and management of an intercropping system and its benefits and usefulness as a low-input agriculture for food and environmental security.

Increasing productivity of maize while decreasing production costs and maintaining soil health are emerging challenges for the rice–maize system in South Asia. A range of integrated nutrient and weed management practices were tested in winter maize for their effects on yield, profitability, and soil health. The nutrient management treatments were a partial substitution of nitrogen with bulky (Farmyard manure; vermicompost) and concentrated organic manures (Brassicaceous seed meal, BSM; neem cake), whereas weed management practices compared chemical controls only versus an integrated approach. The N supplementation through BSM diminished the weed growth by reducing weed N uptake, and enhanced the maize crop uptake of nutrients. As compared to the sole chemical approach, atrazine-applied pre-emergence followed by hoeing reduced weed density by 58 and 67% in years 1 and 2, respectively. The N supplementation through BSM resulted in the maximum yield of maize grain (6.13 and 6.50 t ha−1 in year 1 and year 2, respectively) and this treatment increased yield in year 2 compared to N application through synthetic fertilizer. Hoeing in conjugation with herbicide enhanced the maize grain yield by 9% over herbicide alone. The maximum net return and economic efficiency were achieved with the application of BSM for N supplementation, together with the integrated weed management practice.

The trial on an experimental basis of Slovak University of Agriculture in Nitra during the growing seasons 2011/2012 and 2012/2013 under winter wheat was conducted. The object of this study was to determine the effects of different tillage systems on the dynamics of inorganic nitrogen forms. Three tillage systems were used: B1