EFFECT OF AMENDMENT OF ACID SOIL WITH LIME AND POULTRY COMPOST ON TWO WHEAT VARIETIES DIFFERING IN ACID PHOSPHOTASE ACTIVITY

Abstract

An experiment was conducted at the research farm of Crop Physiology and Ecology Department, Hajee Mohammad Danesh Science and Technology University, Dinajpur during November 2023 to March 2024 to investigate the effect of amendment of acid soil with lime and poultry compost on wheat growth and yield differing in root acid phosphatase activity. The experiment was laid out in a two factors Complete Randomized Design with three replications. The treatments were factor A -two wheat varieties (BWMRI Gom 2: P inefficient and BWMRI Gom 4: P efficient) and factor B - amendment treatments (T1: Recommended doses of fertilizer without P, T2: RDF with optimum P, T3: RDF with lime @ 3 t ha-1, T4: RDF with poultry compost @ 10 t ha-1 and T5: RDF with lime @ 3 t ha-1 and poultry compost @ 10 t ha-1). The pot size was top diameter 85 cm x bottom diameter 65 cm x depth 25 cm. Soil PH, plant height, tillers plant-1, spikes plant-1, shoot dry weight plant-1, flag leaf SPAD value, plant height at harvest, tillers plant-1 at harvest, spikes plant-1 at harvest, spike length at harvest, grain weight spike-1, 100 grains weight and above ground yield plant-1 were increased because of combine application of RDF with lime @ 3 t ha -1 and poultry compost @ 10 t ha-1. Besides, RDF with lime @ 3 t ha -1 and RDF with poultry compost @ 10 t ha-1 alone perform better in case of yield and yield components. RDF with lime @ 3 t ha -1 and RDF with poultry compost @ 10 t ha-1 alone increased leaves per plant and available phosphorous. Amendment of acid soil with lime and poultry compost alone or in combination of both could increase grain yield of wheat significantly. Influence of lime was more in P inefficient BWMRI Gom 2 (48.9%) than P efficient BWMRI Gom 4 (21.4%). On the other hand, influence of poultry compost alone or in combination with lime were more in P efficient BWMRI Gom 4 (38.2% and 30.7%) than P inefficient BWMRI Gom 2 (20.3% and 26.0%). Application of lime and compost alone or in combination is an effective option to curb soil acidity while enhancing soil nutrients availability and crop yield.