Bio Fertilizers with Organic Manures: a Better Strategy for Sustainable Productivity

One of the major crop productivity constraints in the third world is the unavailability of crop nutrients in appropriate amount and form [1]. Modern agricultural practices emphasize widespread use of fertilizers which certainly increased grain yield in many countries in the last six decades. However, long term use of chemical fertilizers also led to a decline in crop yield and soil fertility in the intensive cropping system [2]. It is evident that over fertilization increases concentration of several plant nutrients in surface as well as ground water, which creates a potential health hazard. This has in turn paved the way for integrated plant nutrient management. The use of renewable resources and inputs is one the fundamental principles of sustainable agriculture that enables maximum crop productivity and minimal environmental risk [3]. Therefore, an increased yield with reduced environmental risk requires new cultivation strategies including biological fertilizer [4]. Bio fertilizer is a natural input that can be applied as a complement to, or as a substituent of chemical fertilizer in sustainable agriculture [5]. Integrated use of biofertilizers with natural manures offer a low capital investment and eco-friendly route to boosting farm productivity [6]. Chemical fertilizers have outstandingly boosted crop yields about three decades back. However, yields are currently getting low or stagnated. Moreover, poor-resource holder farmers in developing countries apply little or no fertilizer due to high cost of procurement.