Effect of rice (Oryza sativa) crop establishment technique on succeeding crops.

A field study was undertaken during 2003-07 at Modipuram to assess the effect of rice (Oryza sativa L.) crop establishment methods (direct seeding, drum seeding, mechanical transplanting puddle, mechanical transplanting un puddle and manual transplanting) on 'PHB 71' hybrid rice and their carry over effect on wheat (Triticum aestivum L. emend. Fiori & Paol), mustard (Brassica juncea L. Czernj. Coss), and Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) yield and soil properties. Maximum mean yield of rice (8.5 tonnes/ha) was obtained with drum seeding-wet bed. The direct seeding-dry bed adopted in rice crop resulted in higher yield of succeeding crops of wheat (5.71 tonnes/ha), chickpea (2.20 tonnes/ha) and mustard (1.86 tonnes/ha). Significantly higher weed intensify and weed dry matter were recorded in mustard under direct seeding-dry bed. Wet bed changes in soil physio-chemical properties after fours year indicated that the highest infiltration rate (1.32 cm/ha) and lowest bulk density (1.46 Mg/M 3 ) were recorded under direct seeding-dry bed, while organic C, total N, available P and K were increased by 4.08, 31.82, 7.59 and 30.5% over their initial content under mechanical transplanting-puddle.