Direct and residual effect of integrated nutrient management on garden pea (Pisum sativum) based crop sequence in Lahaul valley of Himachal Pradesh

A field experiment was conducted on a sandy loam soil of Kukumseri (Lahaul & Spiti) on integrated nutrient management in garden pea ( Pisum sativum L.) under dry temperate high hill conditions of Himachal Pradesh for the two consecutive summer seasons of 2006 and 2007. All six combinations of two crop sequences [Pea-Buck- wheat ( Fagopyrum esculentum Moench) and Pea- Sarson ( Brassica rapa var. brown sarson)] and three sources of organic fertilizer (FYM @ 5 t/ha, Rhizobium inoculation (RI) @ 200 g/10 kg seed and FYM @ 2.5 t/ha + Rhizo- bium) as main plot treatments and three levels of chemical fertilizers (50%, 100% and 150% of recommended NPK i.e. 20:60:30 kg N, P O and K O/ha, respectively) as sub-plot treatments were evaluated in a split plot de- 2 5 2 sign. The highest green pod yield of garden pea was obtained with an application of FYM 2.5 t/ha + Rhizobium in integration with 150% of recommended NPK through chemical fertilizers. However, from the view point of econom- ics for the cropping systems (garden pea - buck wheat and garden pea-sarson) as a whole, combined use of FYM + Rhizobium (RI) along with 100% of recommended NPK was found to be as good as FYM + RI along with 150 kg N/ha NPK.