Environmentally sound alternative cropping systems for rice-wheat systems in North West India

Continuous cultivation of rice-wheat cropping system (RWCS) in Indo-Gangetic Plains of India is showing declining factor productivity coupled with many environmental problems. Diversifying the RWCS is one of the environmental friendly options for sustaining food production. Four crop rotations involving maize and sorghum in summer, wheat/potato/mustard in winter followed by short duration mung bean in late spring were studied to identify the most productive and economic combination from 2017 to 2020. Ranking of treatments by Tukey's test of significance indicated that the maize-potato-wheat (16.49 t ha(-1) year(-1)) combination was best in terms of system productivity calculated in terms of wheat equivalent yield (WEY). Maize-wheat-mung bean crop sequence was most profitable by having higher land use efficiency (LUE = 87.67%) and net return (NR = 1577.1 $ ha(-1)). The gross margin comparison revealed that maize-based crop sequences earned higher gross returns (23.17%), net return (93.66%), and B:C ratio (23.7%) than sorghum-based crop sequences. Soil health parameters were improved under the maize-mustard-mung bean system, which increased the organic carbon content by 28.65%, available N by 34.91% with saving of 47.67% in irrigation water. Adoption of alternate cropping sequences instead of rice-wheat, in the Indo-Gangetic Plains of India, could be more sustainable, profitable, and environment friendly.

Automated summary

Continuous cultivation of rice-wheat cropping system in the Indo-Gangetic Plains of India is facing declining productivity and environmental problems. Diversifying crop rotations, such as maize-potato-wheat and maize-wheat-mung bean, can improve system productivity, profitability, and soil health.