Effect of Conservation Tillage and Integrated Nutrient Management on Growth, Yield, of Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) under Pearl Millet–chickpea Cropping System in the Indo-gangetic Plains

Abstract

Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) is an important pulse crop that contributes to food and nutritional security while improving soil fertility through biological nitrogen fixation in cereal-based cropping systems. Conservation tillage and integrated nutrient management are considered promising approaches for enhancing crop productivity and sustaining soil health under resource-conserving agriculture. A field experiment was conducted during the rabi seasons of 2022–23 and 2023–24 at the research farm of the ICAR–Indian Institute of Pulses Research (IIPR), Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, India, to evaluate the influence of tillage management and integrated nutrient management on the growth, nodulation and productivity of chickpea grown in a pearl millet–chickpea cropping system. The experiment was laid out in a split-plot design with three replications, comprising four tillage management practices [zero tillage–zero tillage (ZT–ZT), zero tillage–conventional tillage (ZT–CT), conventional tillage–zero tillage (CT–ZT) and conventional tillage–conventional tillage (CT–CT)] in the main plots and four integrated nutrient management treatments [100% recommended dose of fertilisers (RDF), 75% RDF + 100% crop residue, 50% RDF + 100% crop residue + farmyard manure (FYM) @ 5 t ha⁻¹, and FYM @ 10 t ha⁻¹ + 100% crop residue + biofertilisers (Rhizobium + phosphate-solubilising bacteria)] in the sub-plots. The pooled analysis revealed that ZT–ZT significantly improved plant height (52.84 cm), dry matter accumulation (18.76 g plant⁻¹), nodules per plant (32.45), nodule dry weight (145.62 mg plant⁻¹), root biomass (3.86 g plant⁻¹) and grain yield (21.84 q ha⁻¹) compared with CT–CT, which recorded 47.35 cm plant height, 15.68 g plant⁻¹ dry matter accumulation, 25.92 nodules per plant and 18.45 q ha⁻¹ grain yield. Among the nutrient management treatments, FYM @ 10 t ha⁻¹ + 100% crop residue + biofertilisers produced the highest plant height (53.53 cm), dry matter accumulation (18.94 g plant⁻¹), nodules per plant (33.12), grain yield (22.18 q ha⁻¹), straw yield (33.42 q ha⁻¹) and biological yield (55.60 q ha⁻¹), representing a 17.23% increase in grain yield over 100% RDF. The integrated application of organic and inorganic nutrient sources, together with conservation tillage, promoted better crop establishment, enhanced nodulation and improved biomass accumulation, resulting in higher productivity. The findings suggest that continuous zero tillage integrated with FYM @ 10 t ha⁻¹, crop residue retention and biofertiliser inoculation is an effective and sustainable management strategy for improving chickpea productivity in the pearl millet–chickpea cropping system under the Indo-Gangetic Plains.