<div>Background: Time of pre-emergence herbicide application is an important factor that decides the efficiency of herbicide. If the pre-emergence herbicide is not applied at appropriate time, it may cause ineffective weed control or toxicity to crops. With this background, a field experiment was conducted at TNAU, Madurai to optimize the time of pre-emergence herbicides namely pendimethalin and oxyfluorfen application for effective weed management in irrigated blackgram.&nbsp; 
 
Methods: The experiment was laid out in randomized block design with three replication. Treatments were application of pendimethalin at 0.75 kg ha-1 and oxyfluorfen at 0.2 kg ha-1 on 1, 2, 3, 4 days after sowing, weed free check and unweeded check.&nbsp; 
 
Result: Results of the study revealed that oxyfluorfen gave maximum weed control efficiency as compared to pendimethalin, but toxicity to the crop was observed when oxyfluorfen was sprayed after 2 days of sowing. Yield and economics were achieved higher with application of 0.75 kg ha-1 of pendimethalin at 2 DAS, which was on par with application of 0.2 kg ha-1 of oxyfluorfen at 1 DAS due to lesser toxicity. Application of 0.75 kg ha-1 of pendimethalin and 0.2 kg ha-1 of oxyfluorfen didn&rsquo;t leave any herbicide residue after harvest. Hence, application of 0.75 kg ha-1 of pendimethalin at 2 DAS and 0.2 kg ha-1 of oxyfluorfen at 1 DAS can be recommended for effective weed management in irrigated balckgram.</div>

<div>Optimizing the Application Time of Pre-emergence Herbicide Pendimethalin and Oxyfluorfen Application for Effective Weed Management in Irrigated Blackgram (Vigna mungo L.) and Its Residue Persistence</div>

<div>Background: Kidney bean is a protein rich legume crop largely cultivated in hilly tracts of India. Fungal diseases are major biotic constraints causing severe yield losses and fluopyram and tebuconazole are most commonly used for the management of powdery mildew and anthracnose diseases. Hence, studies were taken on dissipation pattern and dietary risk assessment of fungicides to establish consumer safety. 
 
Methods: A simple QuEChERS analytical method was developed and validated for the analysis of fluopyram its metabolite and tebuconazole in kidney bean immature green pods, mature pods, seeds and soil and analyzed in liquid chromatograph mass spectrometer (LC-MS). The combination fungicide was applied as foliar spray at 125+125 and 250+250 g a.i. ha-1 on kidney bean thrice at 10 days interval. Residues were determined in immature green pods, dry mature pods and soil. Immature green pods were&nbsp; collected on 0 (within 2 hours after last spray), 1, 3, 5, 7, 10, 15 and 20 days after third spray and in dry mature pods and soil collected at the time of harvest. 
 
Result: The average recovery and RSD were in the range of 81.63 - 95.48% and 0.55-5.10%, with 0.01 and 0.05 &micro;g mL-1 as LOD and LOQ. The initial concentrations were 0.55 and 1.04 mg kg-1 for fluopyram&nbsp; and 0.57 and 1.03 mg kg-1 for tebuconazole&nbsp; in standard and double dose, respectively. The half-lives were 3.67-4.07 days for fluopyram and 3.86-4.18 days for tebuconazole in standard and double dose. Dietary intake risk of fluopyram and tebuconazole from kidney bean is negligible for adult men, women and children based on RQ values (&lt;1).</div>

Persistence of Combination Fungicide, Fluopyram + Tebuconazole Residues and its Risk Assessment in Kidney Bean

Background: One of the main reasons for India&rsquo;s decreased food production is the depletion of soil fertility. The primary causes of soil deterioration are lack of awareness among farmers and lack of land use regulations. By limiting the erosion and enhancing the nutrients available to the crops, conservation agriculture increases the organic matter content of the soil and contributes to the improvement of field conditions. But compared to conventional agriculture, the practise of conservation agriculture is less advanced. And also there is a dearth of research on the use of crop residues for the management of soil fertility. So this study was undertaken in order to examine the impacts of crop residue, inorganic fertilizers and cropping system as a component of an integrated crop residues and fertility management system on nutrient uptake and net returns of greengram. 
 
Methods: The experiment consists of strip plot design and was carried out during 2020-21 and 2021-22 under zero till conditions at college farm, Rajendranagar, PJTSAU to study the effect of previous crop residues and fertility levels on succeeding greengram.&nbsp; 
 
Result: According to the data, greengram absorbed more nutrients at various growing stages. The residual effect of incorporation of residues treated with microbial consortia composed of Trichoderma viridae, Aspergillus awamori and Phanerocheate spp. along with 300:100:100 kg ha-1 of N, P2O5 and K2O (125% RDF) and phosphorous supplied in the form of single super phosphate (SSP) resulted in significantly higher financial returns. In greengram, residue incorporated plots outperformed residue burning, removal and retention plots with 125% RDF in terms of nutrient uptake, as well as monetary returns like gross returns, net returns and B:C ratio. In a similar vein, yield in residue-incorporated plots was higher than it was in residue-removal and in-situ burning plots during summer, 2021 and 2022.

Nutrient Uptake and Economics of Summer Greengram as Influenced by Residual Effect of Paddy Residues and Fertility Levels

Background: Farmers&rsquo; conventional tillage and residue removal practices in rice-maize-greengram systems in India are input-intensive, costly and soil degradative. A number of soil quality issues have emerged due to continuous cropping and burning of residues threatening the sustainability of rice based cropping systems for the last more than four decades. Nevertheless, the in-situ or in-field decomposition of crop residue using microbial inoculum is rarely studied. This necessitated the use of microbial consortia developed by a combination of potent strains of fungi which can perform harmoniously for rapid decomposition of crop residues. 
 
Methods: A field experiment was conducted during 2020-21 and 2021-22 with eight residue-management treatments and three fertility levels to zero till maize at college farm, Rajendranagar, PJTSAU using strip plot design and the residual effect on the succeeding greengram was studied. 
 
Result: Greengram growth and yield were significantly higher under residual effect of incorporation of residues treated with microbial consortia consisting of Trichoderma viridae, Aspergillus awamori and Phanerocheate spp. along with 300:100:100 kg ha-1 of N, P2O5 and K2O (125% RDF) and P supplied in the form of single super phosphate (SSP) under zero tillage during summer, 2021 and 2022. Growth parameters like plant height, leaf area index, dry matter production and yield attributes like number of pods plant-1, pod length and number of seeds pod-1 in greengram were higher under residue incorporated plots compared to residue burning, removal and retention plots with 125% RDF.

Residual Effects of Microbial Treated Paddy Residues Applied to Zero Till Maize on Growth and Yield of Summer Greengram

Background: To work out the residual effect of rice residue, FYM and fertilizers on summer moong (Vigna radiate L.) in Rice-potato-summer moong cropping system. 
&nbsp; 
Methods: The present study was carried out at research farm, department of Agronomy, Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, Punjab. The experiment was laid out in factorial randomized block design with two factors. Factor A contains&nbsp; five nutrient management treatments in potato (Rice residue+ 125 % NPK + 25 t ha-1&nbsp;FYM, Rice residue+ 100%&nbsp; NPK + 25 tha-1&nbsp;FYM, Rice residue+ 75 % NPK + 25 tha-1&nbsp;FYM, Rice residue + 125% NPK + 0 tha-1&nbsp;FYM and Without rice residue + 100% NPK+ 50 tha-1&nbsp;FYM) and factor B contains three&nbsp; nitrogen levels in&nbsp; summer moong&nbsp; (0 kg ha-1&nbsp;N, 6.25 kg ha-1&nbsp;N and 12.5 kg ha-1&nbsp;N ). 
&nbsp; 
Result: The plant height, branches, dry matter accumulation, LAI and chlorophyll content index were significantly affected with the treatments applied to preceding potato crop. The application of rice residue+ 125% NPK + 25 tha-1&nbsp;FYM to potato crop resulted significantly higher plant height, branches, dry matter accumulation, LAI and chlorophyll content index of moong crop as compared to rice residue+ 75% NPK + 25 t ha-1&nbsp;FYM and rice residue+ 125% NPK + 0 tha-1&nbsp;FYM while at par to rice residue+ 100% NPK + 25 tha-1&nbsp;FYM and without rice residue + 100 % NPK+ 50 tha-1&nbsp;FYM. The significantly higher biometric parameters were observed with 12.5 kg ha-1&nbsp;N which was significantly higher than the 0 and 6.25 5 kg ha-1 N. The application of rice residue+ 125% NPK + 25 t ha-1&nbsp;FYM to potato crop resulted significantly higher yield and yield attributing characters as compared to rice residue+ 75% NPK + 25 t ha-1&nbsp;FYM and rice residue+ 125% NPK + 0 tha-1&nbsp;FYM while at par to rice residue+ 100% NPK + 25 tha-1&nbsp;FYM and without rice residue + 100% NPK 50 tha-1&nbsp;FYM. The application of higher dose of nitrogen @ 12 kg ha-1&nbsp;also significantly increased the yield and yield attributing characters as compared to lower doses of summer moong. The nutrients uptake ( N,P and K) was also maximum with rice residue+ 125% NPK + 25 t ha-1&nbsp;FYM which was at par to rice residue+ 100% NPK + 25 tha-1&nbsp;FYM and without rice residue + 100% NPK+ 50 tha-1&nbsp;FYM while significantly higher than other treatment. The application of higher dose of nitrogen @ 12 kgha-1&nbsp;in summer moong also significantly increased the nutrient uptake and protein content as compared to lower doses.

Residual Effect of Rice Residue, Fym and Fertilizers on Growth, Yield and Quality of Summer Moong (Vigna radiata L.) in Rice-Potato-Summer Moong Cropping System

Background: Cotton, maize and pulses are widely grown crops in the western zone of Tamil Nadu, resulting in a significant accumulation of crop residues throughout the year. The persistence of these crop residues after harvest can cause problems for farmers and the soil system. Therefore, the goal of the current study is to investigate the carbon mineralization process in these residues to enrich the soil&rsquo;s nutrient content, turning waste into a valuable resource. 
 
Methods: The incubation experiment comprised 13 treatments, each with three replicates. These included a control, surface residue addition, buried residue addition and various combinations of soil, residue, microbial consortia, urea and jaggery, both on the soil surface (S) and incorporated into the soil (I). 
 
Result: The incorporation of crop residues into the soil, along with the addition of 1% microbial consortia, 2.0% jaggery and 1% urea, significantly enhanced carbon mineralization. Among the three crop residues, cowpea exhibited the highest performance, followed by cotton and maize, with values of 692, 564 and 522 &micro;g C g-1 soil, respectively. This trend was further supported by the Michaelis-Menten model (V = 951.72 * x/22.13 + x), with a high goodness-of-fit represented by an R2 value of 0.95 for cowpea. The maximum Vmax (951.72 &micro;mol/min) further substantiates the efficient carbon mineralization achieved by utilizing allocated resources in cowpea-incorporated crop residues (CWFI).

Technology to Increase Carbon Mineralization Potential of Crop Residues under Cotton-Maize-Pulse Cropping System

<div style="text-align: justify;">An experiment was conducted to assess the effect of dietary supplementation of ghee residue on growth performance of Japanese quails. Ghee residue (GR) was included in the diet at 0 (T1), 5 (T2), 10 (T3) and 15 (T4) percent levels and fed to 500 Japanese quails, randomly divided into four treatment groups with five replicates each with twenty birds. The experimental diet was isocaloric and isonitrogenous. The estimated TME, CP and EE of GR were 4800kcal/kg, 24.46% and 40.78%, respectively. The highest body weight (213.55g) with best FE (2.62) was observed at 5% GR fed group (T2). Feed consumption and mortality did not differ significantly among various treatments. Slaughter yield was highest at 5% GR fed group. However, the body weight, FE and carcass yield at 5 and 10% GR fed groups remained statistically similar to that of control. Organoleptic study revealed that the meat of 10% GR fed group (T3) was more acceptable compared to others. Breast muscle cholesterol level was highest in GR fed groups (T2 to T4) compared to control (T1). GR Supplementation at all levels resulted in reduction of feed cost with highest reduction at 15% level (Rs.1.46/kg) but reduction in performance was observed at the same level. It was concluded that ghee residue could be included in the broiler quail diet as an energy, protein and fat source up to 10% level.</div>

Effect of dietary supplementation of ghee residue on the performance of Japanese quails

<div style="text-align: justify;">An experiment was conducted to analyse the chemical composition and nutritive value of ghee residue collected from various regions of Tamil Nadu. The per cent dry matter, crude protein, crude fibre, ether extract, total ash and Nitrogen Free Extract in ghee residue was 90.61, 24.32, 0.26, 40.69, 4.71 and 30.02, respectively. The calcium, phosphorus and magnesium of ghee residue were 0.58, 0.58 and 0.58 per cent, respectively. The copper, manganese and iron levels in ghee residue were 7.06, 350.57 and 413.62 ppm, respectively. Essential amino acids like lysine and methionine were at lower levels in ghee residue. Fatty acid profile in ghee residue including myristic acid, palmitic acid, palmitoleic acid, stearic acid, oleic acid, linoleic acid, linolenic acid, arachidic acid, behenic acid, ecosapentaenoic acid, docosahexaenoic acid and other fatty acids were 12.76, 38.13, 1.73, 12.45, 28.20, 3.81, 0.83, 0.16, 0.63, 0.50, 0.18, and 0.56 per cent, respectively. Oleic acid levels were observed to be higher in ghee residue. Thus, it could be concluded that ghee residue is a rich source of fat and protein and also a rich source of unsaturated fatty acid and oleic acid. Further in vivo trials are needed to find the digestibility and inclusion levels in mongastrics.&nbsp;</div>

Estimation of nutritive value of ghee residue procured from western districts of Tamil Nadu, India

<div>Background: Pesticides act as endocrine disruptors and cause enormous disturbances in steroidogenesis, spermatogenesis and sexual behavioural display. These toxicants modulate and/or disrupt the reproductive and hormonal environment by acting on hypothalamus, pituitary and reproductive organs. Few studies have been carried out to assess the levels of pesticides in dairy cattle / buffaloes. The information on pesticide residues in body fluids especially blood and semen in breeding bulls is lacking.&nbsp; 
 
Method: In the light of above background nineteen fresh semen ejaculates were collected from Milkfed, Khanna and PLDB (Punjab Livestock Development Board), Nabha, Punjab and stored at -80◦C. Immediately after collection, the semen was centrifuged at 4500 &times; g for 20 min at 4◦C. The supernatant (seminal plasma) was stored at -20◦C until processing for the assessment of pesticide residues using gas chromatography (GC). In the present study on crossbred breeding bulls, the semen samples were analyzed for organochlorines, organophosphates and synthetic pyrethroid pesticide residues. Seven OCP were screened namely Heptachlor epoxide, Chlordane, Fipronil, Lindane, Methoxychlor, op-DDT, Endrin. Eleven OPP were screened namely Chorpyrifos, Dichlorovos, Ethion, Monocrotophos, Malathion, Parathion-methyl, Profenphos, Phorate, Triazophos, Quinalphos and Phosalone and four SP&rsquo;s namely Cypermethrin, Permethrin, Deltamethrin, Cyalothrin were screened in the semen samples. Semen samples were also assessed for viability, HOST (%) and abnormality (%) for both fresh as well as post thaw samples. 
 
Result: None of the semen samples were found positive for any of the above pesticide residues. This may be attributed to the feeding of fodder cultivated at the stations without using any pesticides, hence no pesticide residue found in the semen samples of the crossbred breeding bulls of these semen stations In present study, viability (%) of sperms were found to be significantly higher (p&lt;0.05) in fresh (75.57 &plusmn; 5.31) as compared to post thaw (70.17 &plusmn; 4.64) semen of bulls. The abnormality (%) of sperms was found to be significantly lower (p&lt;0.05) in fresh (13.61 &plusmn; 3.71) than post thaw (18.22 &plusmn; 3.59) semen bulls. Also in present study the host (%) was found 67.23&plusmn;4.76 in fresh semen which decreased to 46.82&plusmn;3.55 in post thaw semen.</div>

​Evaluation of Level of Pesticide Residue in Seminal Fluid of Crossbred Bulls

<div>Due to ever increasing population and limited natural resources use of pesticides as a major input to increase agricultural productivity is indispensible today. However, their inadequate application may produce large quantities of residues in the environment leading to environmental contamination. These residues may leach in the soil, water and even remain in the crop residues and food products. From there they enter in human food chain posing serious health hazards. Various food processing techniques, at industrial and/or domestic level, have been found to reduce the contents of pesticide residues in most food materials. These techniques alone or in combination reduce the levels of pesticides significantly in the food items. In the present review effect of processes like washing, peeling, cooking, drying, milling and industrial techniques like, baking, dairy products, fermentation, malting etc are reviewed. The review of literature suggests there is a need to systematize and optimize these techniques so that these can be used to provide a safer food culture for humans.</div>