Effect of Plant Growth Promoting Rhizobacteria (PGPR) and Planting Pattern on Yield and Its Components of Rice (Oryza sativa L.) in Ilam Province, Iran
Abstract—Most parts of the world such as Iran are facing the excessive consumption of fertilizers, that are used to achieve high yield, but increase the cost of production of fertilizer and degradation of soil and water resources. This experiment was carried out to study the effect of PGPR and planting pattern on yield and yield components of rice (Oryza sativa L.) using split plot based on randomized complete block design with three replications in Ilam province, Iran. Bio-fertilizer including Azotobacter, Nitroxin and control treatment (without consumption) were designed as a main plot and planting pattern including 15 × 10, 15 × 15 and 15 × 20 and the number of plant in hill including 3, 4 and 5 plants in hill were considered as a sub-plots. The results showed that the effect of biofertilizers, planting pattern and the number of plants in hill were significant affect on yield and yield components. Interaction effect between bio-fertilizer and planting pattern had important difference on the number spikelet of panicle and harvest index. Interaction effect between bio-fertilizer and the number of plants in hill were significant affect on the number of spikelet per panicle. The maximum grain yield was obtained by inoculation with Nitroxin, planting pattern of 15 × 15 and 4 plants in hill with mean of 1110.6 g.m, 959.9 g.m and 928.4 g.m, respectively.
Impact of Microbial Products on the Biometric Parameters and Productivity of Rice in Madhya Pradesh, India
Despite the increase in chemical and technological inputs, rice production in India has stagnated due to excessive use of chemical inputs and overexploitation of land. This has given rise to the need for adopting sustainable agricultural inputs and practices. This study explores the effect of two organic microbial consortium based products, Magicgro DripSOL and Magicgro Super when used in combination for improving the productivity of commercially grown varieties of Basmati; PB1 and PS4 as well as local scented variety MTU-1010. The trials were conducted on commercial plots spanning across Mandala and Kotma regions of Madhya Pradesh, which were cultivated organically with no external irrigation. The impact of microbial intervention was assessed through biometric and quantitative yield analysis and the data was compared by unpaired T test analysis. In case of PB1, PS4 and MTU 1010, the mean yield increased by 72, 55 and 36%, respectively as compared to the untreated plots. The results signify that a single point intervention using microbial products is capable of bringing about significant improvement in yield. In addition to this, the microbial product application helped in imparting protection against abiotic stress. Therefore, the usage of such products could be considered as part of the solution towards achieving the Nation's mission of promoting sustainable agriculture.
Economics of General-Purpose Assembly Robots
Summary A study of the comparative economics of various automatic assembly systems using general-purpose assembly robots is described. In the study, use is made of a “typical” candidate assembly whose profile is obtained from statistical analysis of actual products submitted by interested companies. It is shown that the choice of assembly system and the various parts presentation methods depends on three main factors, namely: the annual production volume per shift, the number of parts in the product and the equipment payback period.