Comparative Effect of Leguminous and Non-Leguminous Green Manure Crops on Soil Properties at Rampur, Chitwan, Nepal

Green manuring is the practice of adding cover crops to the soil. The excessive use of chemical fertilizers, intensive farming, faulty cultivation practices, and poor soil management have degraded soil health, necessitating the use of green manure. This study aimed to evaluate the best-performing gr...

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Main Authors: Mukesh Pant, Swikriti Panthi, Roshan Chand, Toran Devkota, Ranjan Bhattarai
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Hasan Eleroğlu 2025-07-01
Series:Turkish Journal of Agriculture: Food Science and Technology
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Online Access:https://agrifoodscience.com/index.php/TURJAF/article/view/7648
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author Mukesh Pant
Swikriti Panthi
Roshan Chand
Toran Devkota
Ranjan Bhattarai
author_facet Mukesh Pant
Swikriti Panthi
Roshan Chand
Toran Devkota
Ranjan Bhattarai
author_sort Mukesh Pant
collection DOAJ
description Green manuring is the practice of adding cover crops to the soil. The excessive use of chemical fertilizers, intensive farming, faulty cultivation practices, and poor soil management have degraded soil health, necessitating the use of green manure. This study aimed to evaluate the best-performing green manuring crops that enhance soil properties from the first week of April to the first week of July in Rampur, Chitwan, Nepal. The experiment was performed under Randomized complete block design (RCBD) with five treatments and four replications. The treatments were cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L.), black gram (Vigna mungo L.), Sesbania (Sesbania aculeata Wild.), mung bean (Vigna radiata L.) and Sudan grass (Sorghum bicolor L.). The biomass yield, soil pH, bulk density, soil organic matter, Total nitrogen, and available phosphorus were measured. The data were analyzed using R-Studio for mean comparison among significant variables using Duncan’s Multiple Range Test (DMRT) at a 5% significance level. Sesbania consistently enriched the soil with higher total nitrogen (0.197%), available phosphorus (11.36 kg/ha), soil organic carbon (2.29%), soil carbon stock (40.70 t/ha), low bulk density (1.20 g/cm³), fresh biomass yield (8.25 t/ha), and dry biomass yield (1.62 t/ha). Cowpea emerged as a reliable alternative when Sesbania was not available. However, mung bean and black gram lagged in biomass production and nutrient addition. Sudan grass performed poorly, contributing the least organic matter and available phosphorus. Sesbania, therefore, stands out as the optimal choice, while cowpea serves as a viable substitute when sesbania is unavailable. In addition, leguminous green manuring crops outperformed non-leguminous crops.
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publishDate 2025-07-01
publisher Hasan Eleroğlu
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series Turkish Journal of Agriculture: Food Science and Technology
spelling doaj-art-2e8824a2fd9e4481b2e760f03c02e7222025-08-20T02:46:35ZengHasan EleroğluTurkish Journal of Agriculture: Food Science and Technology2148-127X2025-07-011371880188810.24925/turjaf.v13i7.1880-1888.76486349Comparative Effect of Leguminous and Non-Leguminous Green Manure Crops on Soil Properties at Rampur, Chitwan, NepalMukesh Pant0https://orcid.org/0009-0003-1239-9178Swikriti Panthi1https://orcid.org/0009-0006-3816-5240Roshan Chand2https://orcid.org/0009-0008-7216-5185Toran Devkota3https://orcid.org/0009-0003-3954-6940Ranjan Bhattarai4https://orcid.org/0009-0005-7527-3446Faculty of Agriculture, Agriculture and Forestry University, Rampur, Chitwan, 44200, NepalFaculty of Agriculture, Agriculture and Forestry University, Rampur, Chitwan, 44200, NepalFaculty of Agriculture, Agriculture and Forestry University, Rampur, Chitwan, 44200, NepalFaculty of Agriculture, Agriculture and Forestry University, Rampur, Chitwan, 44200, NepalFaculty of Agriculture, Agriculture and Forestry University, Rampur, Chitwan, 44200, NepalGreen manuring is the practice of adding cover crops to the soil. The excessive use of chemical fertilizers, intensive farming, faulty cultivation practices, and poor soil management have degraded soil health, necessitating the use of green manure. This study aimed to evaluate the best-performing green manuring crops that enhance soil properties from the first week of April to the first week of July in Rampur, Chitwan, Nepal. The experiment was performed under Randomized complete block design (RCBD) with five treatments and four replications. The treatments were cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L.), black gram (Vigna mungo L.), Sesbania (Sesbania aculeata Wild.), mung bean (Vigna radiata L.) and Sudan grass (Sorghum bicolor L.). The biomass yield, soil pH, bulk density, soil organic matter, Total nitrogen, and available phosphorus were measured. The data were analyzed using R-Studio for mean comparison among significant variables using Duncan’s Multiple Range Test (DMRT) at a 5% significance level. Sesbania consistently enriched the soil with higher total nitrogen (0.197%), available phosphorus (11.36 kg/ha), soil organic carbon (2.29%), soil carbon stock (40.70 t/ha), low bulk density (1.20 g/cm³), fresh biomass yield (8.25 t/ha), and dry biomass yield (1.62 t/ha). Cowpea emerged as a reliable alternative when Sesbania was not available. However, mung bean and black gram lagged in biomass production and nutrient addition. Sudan grass performed poorly, contributing the least organic matter and available phosphorus. Sesbania, therefore, stands out as the optimal choice, while cowpea serves as a viable substitute when sesbania is unavailable. In addition, leguminous green manuring crops outperformed non-leguminous crops.https://agrifoodscience.com/index.php/TURJAF/article/view/7648biomass yieldcarbon stocksesbaniasudan grasssustainable
spellingShingle Mukesh Pant
Swikriti Panthi
Roshan Chand
Toran Devkota
Ranjan Bhattarai
Comparative Effect of Leguminous and Non-Leguminous Green Manure Crops on Soil Properties at Rampur, Chitwan, Nepal
Turkish Journal of Agriculture: Food Science and Technology
biomass yield
carbon stock
sesbania
sudan grass
sustainable
title Comparative Effect of Leguminous and Non-Leguminous Green Manure Crops on Soil Properties at Rampur, Chitwan, Nepal
title_full Comparative Effect of Leguminous and Non-Leguminous Green Manure Crops on Soil Properties at Rampur, Chitwan, Nepal
title_fullStr Comparative Effect of Leguminous and Non-Leguminous Green Manure Crops on Soil Properties at Rampur, Chitwan, Nepal
title_full_unstemmed Comparative Effect of Leguminous and Non-Leguminous Green Manure Crops on Soil Properties at Rampur, Chitwan, Nepal
title_short Comparative Effect of Leguminous and Non-Leguminous Green Manure Crops on Soil Properties at Rampur, Chitwan, Nepal
title_sort comparative effect of leguminous and non leguminous green manure crops on soil properties at rampur chitwan nepal
topic biomass yield
carbon stock
sesbania
sudan grass
sustainable
url https://agrifoodscience.com/index.php/TURJAF/article/view/7648
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AT roshanchand comparativeeffectofleguminousandnonleguminousgreenmanurecropsonsoilpropertiesatrampurchitwannepal
AT torandevkota comparativeeffectofleguminousandnonleguminousgreenmanurecropsonsoilpropertiesatrampurchitwannepal
AT ranjanbhattarai comparativeeffectofleguminousandnonleguminousgreenmanurecropsonsoilpropertiesatrampurchitwannepal