A comparative study on the application methods of phosphorus and silicon in finger millet (Eleusine coracana) in the acidic soils of Meghalaya, India

A field experiment was conducted at the research farm of the College of Agriculture (CAU), Kyrdemkulai, Ri-Bhoi, Meghalaya, during the Kharif season of 2023 to study the “Comparison of Application Methods of Phosphorus and Silicon in Finger Millet ( Eleusine coracana ).” The experiment was designed in a factorial randomized block design with three replications. Factor-A (phosphorus) consisted of three application methods: broadcasting (BC), band placement (BP), and seedling root dip (SRD). Similarly, Factor-B (silicon) also included three application methods: broadcasting, band placement, and seedling root dip. The results revealed that the different application methods of phosphorus and silicon significantly influenced most of the parameters studied. Yield parameters and soil parameters were all affected. Yield parameters, including biological yield, grain yield, and stover yield, were significantly highest in the A2B2 treatment (phosphorus-band placement and silicon-band placement) at 7632, 2967, and 4665 kg ha ^-1 , respectively, and lowest in A3B1 (phosphorus-seedling root dip and silicon-broadcasting) at 4797, 1789, and 3008 kg ha ^-1 , respectively. Soil parameters such as available nitrogen (N), available phosphorus (P), exchangeable acidity, and exchangeable Al were significantly highest in A3B3 (P-SRD and Si-SRD) at 344 kg ha ^-1 , 25.7 kg ha ^-1 , 1.9 meq 100g ^-1 soil, and 1.117 meq 100g ^-1 soil, respectively. Soil available silicon (Si) was significantly highest in A1B2 (P-BC and Si-BP) at 25.63 mg/kg soil. Total phosphorus and silicon nutrient uptake were significantly highest in A2B2 (phosphorus-band placement and silicon-band placement) at 8.14 kg ha ^-1 and 108.92 kg ha ^-1 , respectively. The results of the experiment indicated that the band placement method for both phosphorus and silicon (P-BP and Si-BP) was superior in terms of yield, while the seedling root dip method (P-SRD and Si-SRD) was more effective for soil fertility in the mid-hills of Meghalaya. This is first time reporting comparison of application methods of phosphorus and silicon in finger millet.