Effect of organic manures and chemical fertilizers on grain yield of maize in rainfed area

A field experiment was conducted to study the effects of different rates of farm yard manure (FYM), poultry manure (PM), sewage sludge (SS) and chemical fertilizers on grain yield and NPK uptake of maize plants. The chemical fertilizers and different organic manures were incorporated in soil individually and in combination, before sowing the maize crop variety Agaiti 85. The experiment was carried out under Randomised Complete Block Design (RCBD) with 3 repeats. The results revealed that PM significantly enhanced grain yield of maize when applied alone or in combination with half of recommended chemical fertilizer as compared to FYM, SS and NP fertilizers. However, organic manures (FYM, SS) performed significantly well when applied in combination with chemical fertilizers. The maximum increase in NP uptake was observed with the application of chemical fertilizer (NP) @ 90- 60 kg ha(-1) and K uptake with PM alone.