Agricultural Reviews 

About: Agricultural Reviews is an academic journal published by Agricultural Research Communication Center. The journal publishes majorly in the area(s): Agriculture & Biology. It has an ISSN identifier of 0253-1496. It is also open access. Over the lifetime, 879 publications have been published receiving 5793 citations.

Effect of mulching on crop production under rainfed condition - a review

Abstract: Mulching is an agricultural and horticultural technique in which the use of organic is involved. This technique is very useful in protecting the roots of the plants from heat, cold. Mulch is used to cover soil surface around the plants to create congenial condition for the growth. This may include temperature moderation, reduce salinity and weed control. It exerts decisive effects on earliness, yield and quality of the crop. Mulching is also applicable to most field crops. However, it is preferred in fruit orchard, flower and vegetable production, nurseries and forest where frequent cultivation is not required for raising the crops. Black plastic mulch is most commonly used in agriculture. Clear plastic mulch is used in some areas due to its increased soil warming characteristics. Research has shown that white or aluminum reflective mulch also repels aphids which spread some virus diseases in vine crops such as squash. So, mulching can be effective change in increasing horticultural crop production in water scarcity regions.

Lodging in cereals – A review

Abstract: Permanent displacement of plants from their vertical stance is called lodging. It is more common in cereals like wheat, oat and barley. Stalk breakage is also observed in sorghum and maize. Lodging usually occurs close to harvest and cereals are prone to lodging near harvest. There are two types of lodging stem and root. It is a complicated phenomenon influenced by many factors including wind, rain, topography, soil type, previous crop management and disease. Intensively cultivated cereals with high inputs like irrigation and fertilizer are more prone to lodging. Lodging reduces cereal yields considerably especially under mechanized harvesting. It also increases cost of harvesting with decrease in quality. Adoption of proper method of planting and time, population, nutrition, rotation and disease management helps in reducing lodging.

Soybean seed quality during storage a review

Abstract: Soybean seed quality is affected during pre and post harvest periods. Soybean seed reaches its maximum potential for germination and vigour at physiological maturity. The germination potential (viability) is very short lived in soybean as compared to other oilseed crops and is often reduced prior to planting time. This loss of germination is much more acute under tropical conditions like India. These environmental conditions make very difficult to maintain its viability during storage. Such deteriorated seed is one of the basic reasons for low productivity in soybean. Further, the soybean seed is highly susceptible to mechanical injury and damage occurring during post harvest handling, which affect the viability and vigour of soybean seed during storage. Besides these, large number of pathogens are also associated with soybean seed which lead to the reduction in germination and storability of the seed. However, the seed quality and viability during storage depend upon the initial quality of seed and the manner in which it is stored. The rapid seed deterioration of soybean is thought to be due to lipid peroxidation, subsequently resulting in loss of seed viability. The research on these aspects of soybean seed deterioration during storage has been reviewed in this article.

Seed priming techniques in field crops-A review

Abstract: Germination and seedling emergence are the critical stages in the plant life cycle. Insufficient seedling emergence and inappropriate stand establishment are the main constraints in the production of crops which receiving less rainfall. Farmers do not have sufficient resources to meet the requirement of seedbed preparation for sowing and they are at more risk as compared to progressive farmers. On the other hand good establishment increases competitiveness against weeds, increases tolerance to drought period, increase yield and avoids the time consuming need for re-sowing that is costly too. It is well accepted fact that priming improves germination, reduces seedling emergence time and improves stand establishment. A method to improve the rate and uniformity of germination is the priming or physiological advancement of the seed lot. The general purpose of seed priming is to partially hydrate the seed to a point where germination processes are begun, but they would exhibit rapid germination when re-imbibed under normal or stress conditions. A lot of work has been done on seed priming and results of these studies indicate well the importance of priming to get a good crop stand in many crops of tropical region such as rice, maize, sorghum and pigeon pea.

Strategies for improving nitrogen use efficiency: A review

Abstract: Nitrogen (N) is the most critical externally added input for any crop production system. The half of the global population directly or indirectly depends on nitrogenous fertilizers for food supply. Today, Rice, wheat, and maize are consuming more than 90% of total nitrogenous fertilizer used in cereals. Underuse of nitrogen is associated with lower crop production while overuse leads to several soil and environmental related consequences. Therefore, response to applied nitrogen and its use efficiency have to be monitored properly for obtaining the maximum potential and sustainable yield. Efficiency of applied nitrogenous fertilizers is very low due to its various losses i.e. volatilization, leaching, surface runoff and denitrification from soil-plant system. Therefore, the proper understanding of advanced soil and plant management practices which helps in enhancement of nitrogen recovery efficiency is one of the key factors to enhance crop output, decreasing cost of cultivation, and to maintain environmental quality which ultimately adds towards the goal of achieving long term sustainable production system. In this review, an attempt has been made summarize the locally as well as scientific soil and crop management technologies used for improving use efficiency of applied N. This paper also discusses nitrogen cycling in soil-plant systems, various N losses pathways, present status and most possible management options at the farm level for enhancing nitrogen use in crop production system.