ORIGINAL PAPER
Bio-cover addition, tillage, and bioinoculants affect wheat yield, potassium availability, and quantity-intensity relations in the Himalayan foothills of India
1
Department of Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry, Uttar Banga Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Pundibari, Cooch Behar, 736165, West Bengal, India
2
Department of Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry, Bihar Agricultural University, Sabour, Bhagalpur, 813210, India
Submission date: 2025-06-20
Final revision date: 2025-10-04
Acceptance date: 2025-12-12
Online publication date: 2025-12-12
Publication date: 2025-12-30
Corresponding author
Soil Sci. Ann., 2026, 77(1)215530
KEYWORDS
ABSTRACT
The Himalayan foothills experience heavy rainfall and imbalanced fertilization, particularly with potassium (K). In traditional farming, K fertilization is often low or neglected, resulting in a decline in crop productivity. This study aims to evaluate the impact of bio-cover addition, tillage, and bioinoculants on wheat yield, K availability, and quantity-intensity relations in the Himalayan foothills of India. A field experiment was conducted in a factorial randomized block design with three replications, comprising eight treatment combinations: zero tillage or conventional tillage, no or bio-cover addition and no or seed treatment using bioinoculants in the rice-wheat system. Soil samples were collected from post-wheat plots. The results showed that following zero tillage and bio-inoculation, wheat yields increased by 4% and 11%, respectively. Bio-cover addition with bio-inoculation and tillage with bio-inoculation also increased the yield. However, the three-way interaction of these practices did not notably vary the yield. Among fractions of K, water-soluble K increased in bio-cover addition and decreased in zero tillage practice. Additionally, bioinoculants did not affect this fraction of K. Exchangeable K was higher when combining zero tillage with bio-cover and bioinoculants, whereas non-exchangeable K did not vary with tillage practices and bioinoculants; moreover, bio-cover additions improved this fraction of K. In the case of mineral K and total K, zero tillage and bio-cover addition increased in the soil, except in the deeper layer. Among quantity/intensity parameters, potential buffering capacity was significantly highest when combining zero tillage with bio-cover and bioinoculants, contrasting with the activity ratio, which was highest when combining conventional tillage with bio-cover and no bioinoculants. The correlation study showed that the fractions of K and quantity/intensity parameters were in dynamic equilibrium. Therefore, this study concludes that management practices such as zero tillage, bio-cover addition, and bioinoculants in the Himalayan foothills of India can enhance K availability in the soil. Overall, we recommend that long-term bio-cover additions under zero or conventional tillage with bio-inoculations can improve and maintain K supply in the rice-wheat system.
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