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Research Article
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Ferti-irrigational Effect of Paper Mill Effluent on Agronomical Characteristics of Abelmoschus esculentus L. (Okra) |
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Vinod Kumar
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A.K. Chopra
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ABSTRACT
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The ferti-irrigational effect of an agro-based paper mill
effluent on Abelmoschus esculentus (var. IHR-31) was investigated. Different
doses of paper mill effluent viz. 5, 10, 25, 50, 75 and 100% were used for fertigation
of A. esculentus along with bore well water (control). The study revealed
that paper mill effluent had significant (p<0.05) effect on EC, pH, OC, Na+,
K+, Ca2+, Mg2+, Fe2+, TKN, PO43¯,
SO42¯, Cd, Cr, Cu, Mn and Zn of the soil in both
seasons. Insignificant (p>0.05) changes in WHC and bulk density of the soil
were observed after irrigation with paper mill effluent. The agronomical performance
of A. esculentus was increased from 5 to 25% and decreased from 50 to
100% concentration of paper mill effluent as compared to control in both seasons.
The heavy metals concentration was increased in A. esculentus from 5
to 100% concentrations of paper mill effluent in both seasons. Biochemical components
like crude proteins, crude fiber and crude carbohydrates were found maximum
with 25% paper mill effluent in both seasons. The order of Contamination Factor
(Cf) of various heavy metals was Cr>Cd>Mn>Zn>Cu for soil and Zn>Mn>Cu>Cr>Cd
for A. esculentus plants after fertigation with paper mill effluent.
Therefore, paper mill effluent can be used as a biofertigant after appropriate
dilution to improve yield of A. esculentus.
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Received: January 09, 2013;
Accepted: March 03, 2013;
Published: May 08, 2013
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INTRODUCTION
The value of wastewater for crop production has been recognized in arid and
semi arid regions of the world including India (Feldkirchner
et al., 2003; Calacea et al., 2005;
Battaglia et al., 2007; Medhi
et al., 2008; Kumar, 2010). Effluent is an
important source of irrigation water as well as a source of plant nutrients
such as Nitrogen (N), Phosphorus (P), Potassium (K) and trace elements like
Sodium (Na), Calcium (Ca) and Magnesium (Mg) (Kumar and
Chopra, 2012; Chopra and Pathak, 2013). Effluent
irrigation can eliminate water shortage; reduce the need for chemical fertilizer
and enhance the soil fertility (Srinivas et al.,
1999; Dhevagi et al., 2000; Kumar,
2010). However, unregulated irrigation with untreated effluent poses serious
public health risks, as effluent is a major source of heavy metals that cause
accumulation in plant parts (Gomathi and Oblisami, 1992;
Singh et al., 1996; Dutta
and Boissya, 1998). The effluent contains heavy metals such as Cadmium (Cd),
Chromium (Cr), Copper (Cu), Iron (Fe), Nickel (Ni) and Zinc (Zn) which accumulates
in plant and vegetable parts and cause adverse health effects (Hati
et al., 2007; Chopra and Pathak, 2013).
Long term irrigation with effluents increases organic carbon and heavy metals
accumulation in soil and increase the chances of their entrance in food chain
and this ultimately causes significant geoaccumulation, bioaccumulation and
biomagnifications (Chopra et al., 2009; Srivastava
et al., 2012).
The pulp and paper making industry is one of the major effluent generation
industries in the world (Howe and Wagner, 1996; Dutta
and Boissya, 1999; Chaudhary et al., 2002).
In recent years, the use of treated, partially treated or raw effluent for irrigating
productive agriculture or forest crops has become a popular alternative to discharge
into surface water bodies (Kannan and Oblisami, 1990;
Srivastava, 1991; Fazeli et
al., 1998; Phukan and Bhattacharyya, 2003).
Among agro-based industries, pulp and paper mills are one of the most polluting
industries in India (Chaudhary et al., 2002).
India has 666 pulp and paper mills, out of which 632 mills are agro-residue
based mills (Kumar and Chopra, 2012). They generate
a huge amount of wastewater (black liquor) having high Biological Oxygen Demand
(BOD) and chemical oxygen demand (COD) values (Howe and
Wagner, 1999; Kumar and Chopra, 2012; Pathak
et al., 2013).
Abelmoschus esculentus (L.) is an economically valuable vegetable crop
grown in tropical and sub-tropical countries of the world including India (Chopra
et al., 2012). This crop is suitable for cultivation as a garden
crop as well as on large commercial farms. It is grown commercially in India,
Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Turkey, Iran, Burma, Japan, Malayasia, Brazil,
Ghana, Ethiopian and the Southern United States (Chopra et
al., 2012; Pathak et al., 2012). Globally
India ranks first with 3.5 million tonnes (70% of the total global yield) of
A. esculentus produced from over 0.35 million ha land (Chopra
et al., 2012).
Some crops have higher potential yields with effluent irrigation. It is an
important to know the crop-effluent relationship for their suitable use in cultivation
of agricultural crops (Kumar, 2010; Chopra
and Pathak, 2012). Recently various investigations have been carried out
on the use of industrial effluents in cultivation of various agricultural crops
(Kannan and Oblisami, 1990; Singh
et al., 2002; Hati et al., 2007; Kumar,
2010). But most studies were conducted on few agronomic stages with limited
parameters in various crops, but there are few reports on comprehensive agronomic
studies at various agronomic stages of these plants (Kaushik
et al., 2005; Kumar, 2010). Thus, much attention
has not been paid so far on the use of industrial effluents on the cultivation
of agricultural crops like A. esculentus. Keeping in view the reuse of
effluent as fertigant and the economic importance of A. esculentus, the
present investigation was undertaken to study the ferti-irrigational effect
of paper mill effluent on agronomical characteristics of Abelmoschus esculentus
(L.).
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Experimental design: A field study was conducted at the Experimental
Garden of the Department of Zoology and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Life
Sciences, Gurukula Kangri University Haridwar, India (29°55'10.81'' N and
78°07'08.12'' E), to study the ferti-irrigational effects of paper mill
effluent on A. esculentus. The crop was cultivated in the summer and
rainy seasons in 2010 and 2011. Six plots (each plot had an area of 9 m2)
were selected for six treatments of paper mill effluent viz. 0% (control), 10,
25, 50, 75 and 100% for the cultivation of A. esculentus. The six treatments
were placed within each of the six blocks in a randomized complete block design.
Effluent collection and analysis: The effluent samples were provided
from the Shamli Paper mill, Shamli (Uttar Pradesh), which produces paper from
agricultural waste or residues. Effluent waste collected from a settling tank
installed on the campus, by the paper mill, to reduce Biological Oxygen Demand
(BOD) and solids from the paper mill in plastic container and were brought to
the laboratory and analyzed for Total Dissolved Solids (TDS), pH, Electrical
Conductivity (EC), Dissolved Oxygen (DO), BOD, COD, Chlorides (Cl-),
bicarbonates (HCO3-), carbonates (CO32-),
sodium (Na+), potassium (K+), calcium (Ca2+),
magnesium (Mg2+), Total Kjeldahl Nitrogen (TKN), nitrate (NO32-),
phosphate (PO43-), sulphate (SO42-),
cadmium (Cd), chromium (Cr), copper (Cu), iron (Fe), manganese (Mn), zinc (Zn),
standard plate count (SPC) and most probable number (MPN) following standard
methods (American Public Health Association, 2005; Chaturvedi
and Sankar, 2006) and used as fertigant.
Soil preparation, filling of bags, sampling and analysis: The loamy
soil was collected from a depth of 0-15 cm. Each bag (30x30 cm) was filled with
5 kg of soil which had been air-dried and sieved to remove debris and mixed
with equal quantity of cow manure. The soil in each bag was fertigated twice
in a month with 50 gallons of paper mill effluent with 5, 10, 25, 50, 75 and
100% along with well water as the control. The soil was analyzed prior to planting
and after harvest for various physico-chemical parameters like soil texture,
Bulk Density (BD), Water Holding Capacity (WHC), EC, pH, OC, Na+,
K+, Ca2+, Fe2+, Mg2+, PO43-,
SO42-, TKN, Cd, Cr, Cu, Mn and Zn determined following
standard methods cited by Chaturvedi and Sankar (2006).
Sowing of seeds and irrigation pattern: Seed of A. esculentus
were sown at the end of February 2010 and 2011 for the summer crop and at the
end of July 2010 and 2011 for the rainy season crop. Seed of A. esculentus,
cv. IHR-31, were procured from ICAR, Pusa, New Delhi and sterilized with 0.01%
mercuric chloride and soaked in water for 12 h. Seeds were sown in 10 rows with
a distance of 30.0 cm between rows, while distance between the seeds was 15
cm. The thinning was done manually after 15 days of germination to maintain
the desired plant spacing and to avoid competition between plants. The plants
in each plot were fertigated twice in a month with 50 gallons of paper mill
effluent with 5, 10, 25, 50, 75 and 100% along with bore well water as the control.
Study of crop parameters: The agronomic parameters of A. esculentus
at different stages (0-90 days) were determined following standard methods for
seed germination, plant height, root length, number of flowers, number of fruits,
fruits length and crop yield (Chandrasekar et al.,
1998); dry weight (Milner and Hughes, 1968); chlorophyll
content (Porra, 2005); Relative Toxicity (RT) (Chapagain,
1991), Leaf Area Index (LAI) (Denison and Russotti,
1997) and harvest index (HI) (Sinclair, 1998). The
nutrient quality of A. esculentus was determined by using the following
parameters; crude protein (4.204 AOAC, 1980), crude fiber
(4.601 AOAC, 1980) and the total carbohydrate in dry matter
were determined by the anthrone reagent method (Cerning
and Guilbot, 1973).
Extraction of metals and their analysis: For metal analysis a 5-10 mL
sample of paper mill effluent and 0.5-1.0 g of air dried soil or plants were
digested in tubes with 3 mL of conc. HNO3 digested in an electrically
heated block for 1 h at 145°C. To this mix 4 mL of HClO4 was
added and heated to 240°C for 1 h. The mix was cooled and filtered through
Whatman No. 42 filter paper and made to 50 mL and used for analysis. Metals
were analyzed using an Atomic absorption spectrophotometer (PerkinElmer, Analyst
800 AAS, GenTech Scientific Inc., Arcade, NY) following methods of American
Public Health Association (2005) and Chaturvedi and Sankar
(2006). The Contamination factor (Cf) for metals accumulated in paper mill
effluent irrigated soil and A. esculentus was calculated following Hakanson
(1980).
Data analysis: Data were analyzed with SPSS (ver. 14.0, SPSS Inc., Chicago,
Ill.). Data were subjected to one-way ANOVA. Mean standard deviation and coefficient
of correlation (r-value) of soil and crop parameters with effluent concentrations
were calculated with MS Excel (ver. 2003, Microsoft Redmond Campus, Redmond,
WA) and graphs produced with Sigma plot (ver. 12.3, Systat Software, Inc., Chicago,
IL).
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Characteristics of paper mill effluent: Values of physico-chemical and
microbiological parameters varied over paper mill effluent concentration (Table
1). The paper mill effluent was alkaline i.e., pH 8.76. The alkaline nature
of the paper mill effluent might be due to presence of high concentrations of
alkalis used in pulping. The BOD, COD, Cl-, Ca2+, Fe2+,
TKN, SO42-, MPN and SPC were above the prescribed limits
of the Indian Irrigation Standards (BIS, 1991). High
BOD and COD might be due to presence of high utilizable organic matter and rapid
consumption of dissolved inorganic materials. The higher bacterial load (SPC
and MPN) in paper mill effluent might be due to presence of more dissolved solids
and organic matter in effluent as earlier reported by Kumar
(2010). The TKN, PO43-, K+, Ca2+
and Mg2+ in effluent were higher than the prescribed standards (Table
1).
In the present study, the content of BOD, COD, TKN, Cl-, SO42-
and PO43- were more in paper mill effluent then the content
of BOD (635.78 mg L-1), COD (964.56 mg L-1), total nitrogen
(36.45 mg L-1), chlorides (324.48 mg L-1), sulphate (468.50
mg L-1) and phosphate (46.75 mg L-1) in paper mill effluent
reported by Singh et al. (2002). In the case
of metals, the contents of Cd, Cr Cu, Fe, Mn and Zn were higher than permissible
limits for industrial effluent (BIS, 1991). The content
of these metals in paper mill effluent were also higher then the content of
Cd (11.42 mg L-1), Cr (12.88 mg L-1) Cu (8.65 mg L-1)
and Zn (16.44 mg L-1), in paper mill effluent reported by Thompson
et al. (2001).
Effect of paper mill effluent on characteristics of soil: Physico-chemical
characteristics of the soil characteristics changed due to irrigation with paper
mill effluent. At harvest (90 days after sowing) there was no significant change
in the soil texture (loamy; 40% sand: 40% silt: 20% clay). WHC and BD were insignificantly
(p>0.05) affected by different concentrations of paper mill effluent in both
the cultivated seasons (Table 2). Season, paper mill effluent
concentration and the their interaction affected OC, TKN, all cations like Na+,
K+, Ca2+, Mg2+, Fe2+, anions PO43-
and SO42- and metals Cd, Cr, Cu, Mn and Zn of the
soil (Table 2-4). It has also been observed
that effluent irrigation generally adds OC, Na+, Ca2+,
K+, Mg2+, PO43-, HCO3-,
Cl-, Zn, Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni and Mn to the soil (Pokhrel
and Viraraghavan, 2004; Patterson et al., 2008;
Chopra et al., 2009). WHC and BD were reduced
from their initial (control) values 42.86% and 1.40 g cm-3 to 41.15%
and 1.39 g cm-3, respectively with 100% paper mill effluent concentration.
The pH of the soil was turned alkaline to more alkaline (8.86 and 8.96) after
irrigation with 100% paper mill effluent in both seasons (Table
5). The change in soil pH and reduction in WHC and BD after paper mill effluent
irrigation have also been observed earlier by Kumar and
Chopra (2012).
Paper mill effluent had significant (p<0.01) effect on EC, pH, OC, Na+,
K+, Ca2+, Mg2+, TKN, PO43-,
SO42-, Fe, Zn, Cu, and Mn of the soil in both seasons
(Table 5).
In the present study, more irrigation of A. esculentus considerably
increased the content of OC, Na+, K+, Ca2+,
Mg2+, Fe2+, TKN, PO43-, SO42-
Zn, Cd, Cu, Mn and Cr in soil. Soil pH was affected by the 50, 75 and 100% paper
mill effluent concentrations (Table 5). The 25 to 100% paper
mill effluent concentrations significantly (p<0.05) affected EC, OC, TKN,
Na+, K+, Ca2+, Mg2+, Fe2+,
PO43-, SO42, Cu, Cr, Cd, Mn and
Zn in A. esculentus cultivated soil in both seasons (Table
5, 6). Irrigation with 100% paper mill effluent had the
most reduction in WHC, BD; and increase in EC, OC, Na+, K+,
Ca2+, Mg2+, Fe2+, TKN, PO43-,
SO42-, Cd, Cr, Cu, Mn and Zn in both seasons (Table
5, 6).
Table 1: |
Physico-chemical and microbiological characteristics of paper
mill effluent |
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BWW: Bore well water. BIS: Bureau of Indian standard, Least
squares means analysis |
Table 2: |
ANOVA for effect of paper mill effluent on soil characteristics |
 |
ns, *,**non-significant or significant at p<0.05 or p<0.01,
ANOVA |
Table 3: |
ANOVA for effect of paper mill effluent on concentrations
of cations and anions |
 |
*, **Significant at p<0.05 or p<0.01, ANOVA |
Table 4: |
ANOVA for effect of paper mill effluent on concentrations
of metals |
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*,**Significant at p<0.05 or p<0.01, ANOVA |
The findings were very much in accordance with Phukan and
Bhattacharyya (2003).
Total average organic matter content in the soil irrigated with effluent was
higher than the soil irrigated with bore well water. The more organic matter
in effluent irrigated soil might be due to the high organic nature of the effluent.
Kumar and Chopra (2012) found the organic content in
the soil irrigated with paper mill effluent to be higher than in the soil irrigated
with bore well water. Average values of TKN, PO43- and
K+ in the soil irrigated with effluent were found to be higher than
in soil irrigated with bore well water. The high amount of TKN, PO43-
and K+ in the soil was due to irrigation with TKN, PO43-
and K+ rich paper mill effluent. The content of Na+ and
SO42- was higher in the soil irrigated with paper mill
effluent indicating a link between soil Na+ and SO4 2-
and higher EC in the paper mill effluent.
The soil parameters, EC, OC, Na+, K+, Ca2+,
Mg2+, Fe2+, TKN, PO43-, SO42-
Zn, Cd, Cu, Mn and Cr positively correlated with paper mill effluent concentration
in both seasons (Table 7). The Contamination factor (Cf) of
the metals indicated that Cr was highest while Cu was lowest in both seasons
after irrigation with 100% paper mill effluent. The Cf of metals were in the
order of Cr>Cd>Mn>Zn>Cu after irrigation with paper mill effluent
in both seasons (Fig. 1). The concentrations of metals were
higher in soil irrigated with effluent than in soil irrigated with control water.
Thus, fertigation with distillery effluent increased nutrients as well as metals
content in soil. Enrichment of various metals was also observed by Fazeli
et al. (1998) in soil after paper mill effluent irrigation.
Effect of paper mill effluent on seed germination of A. esculentus:
At 0-15 days after sowing, the best germination (97 and 94%) was for with control
and the least (83 and 79%) was due to treatment with 100% paper mill effluent
(Fig. 2). Germination was negatively correlated (r = -0.95)
with paper mill effluent concentrations in both seasons.
Table 5: |
Effects of paper mill effluent concentration and season interaction
on physico-chemical characteristics of a loamy soil before and after irrigation
of A. esculentus in both seasons |
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*,**non-significant or significant at p<0.05 or p<0.01,
Least squares means analysis |
Table 6: |
Effects of paper mill effluent concentration and season interaction
on physico-chemical characteristics of a loamy soil before and after irrigation
of A. esculentus in both seasons |
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ns,*** non-significant or significant at P<0.01; Least
squares means analysis |
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Fig. 1: |
Contamination factor of the metals in soil after irrigation
with paper mill effluent. Error bars are standard error of the mean |
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Fig. 2: |
Seed germination of A. esculentus after irrigation
with paper mill effluent. Error bars are standard error of the mean |
Table 7: |
Coefficient of correlation (r) between paper mill effluent
and soil characteristics in both seasons |
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The ANOVA indicated that season had no significant (p>0.05) effect on seed
germination and relative toxicity. Paper mill effluent concentration and their
interaction with season affected seed germination of A. esculentus, but
not relative toxicity (Table 8).
The maximum relative toxicity (116.86 and 118.98%) of paper mill effluent against
germination was for the 100% paper mill effluent (Fig. 3)
and it was positively correlated (r = +0.54) with paper mill effluent concentrations
in both seasons. The findings are very much in accordance with Malla
and Mohanty (2005) reported that the germination of green gram (Phaseolus
anreus L.) was decreased as concentration of the paper mill effluent increased
from 0 to 100%. The findings were also supported by Reddy
and Borse (2001).
In the present investigation, the higher concentration of paper mill effluent
did not support seed germination. The higher concentration of paper mill effluent
lowered germination of A. esculentus likely due to presence of high salt
content in the effluent at these concentrations. Seed take up water during germination
and hydrolyse stored food material and to activate enzymatic systems. During
germination salts can inhibit seed germination.
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Fig. 3: |
Relative toxicity of paper mill effluent against seed germination
of A. esculentus. Error bars are standard error of the mean |
The mechanism of inhibition of seed germination by NaCl may be related to radicle
emergence due to insufficient water absorption, or to toxic effects on the embryo.
Seed that absorb an insufficient amount of water can accumulated a large amount
of Cl¯ when the osmotic pressure of the substrate is increased by salt
concentration and as a result, the seeds emerged slowly, and at higher concentrations
do not germinate (Patterson et al., 2008). High
concentrations are usually most damaging to young plants but not necessarily
at germination, although, high salt concentration can slow germination by several
days, or completely inhibit it. Because soluble salts move readily with water,
evaporation moves salts to the soil surface where they accumulate and harden
the soil surface delays germination (Thompson et al.,
2001; Kaushik et al., 2005).
Effect of paper mill effluent on vegetative growth of A. esculentus:
Vegetative growth at 45 days was affected in both seasons (Table
8). Average plant height (112.45 and 116.64 cm), root length (16.85 and
19.36 cm), dry weight (74.63 and 76.87 g), chlorophyll content (3.36 and 3.48
mg./g.f.wt) and LAI/plant (3.64 and 3.68) of A. esculentus were observed
with control while plant height (126.32 and 132.44 cm), root length (18.40 and
21.46 cm), dry weight (82.74 and 88.96 g), chlorophyll content (3.86 and 3.95
mg./g.f.wt) and LAI/plant (3.74 and 3.82) of A. esculentus were noted
with 100% paper mill effluent in both seasons.
Maximum plant height (152.48 and 162.83 cm), root length (22.87 and 25.49 cm),
dry weight (98.75 and 103.44 g), chlorophyll content (4.64 and 5.32 mg./g.f.wt)
and LAI/plant (4.96 and 5.19) of A. esculentus were due to treatment
with the 25% concentration of paper mill effluent in both seasons. The findings
were also supported by Kamalakar et al. (1991).
The ANOVA indicated that paper mill effluent concentration significantly (p<0.05)
affected plant height and chlorophyll content of A. esculentus (Table
8).
Table 8: |
ANOVA for effect of paper mill effluent on germination and
vegetative growth of A. esculentus |
 |
ns, *,non-significant or significant at p<0.05, ANOVA |
Table 9: |
Coefficient of correlation (r) between paper mill effluent
and A. esculentus in both seasons |
 |
Season had no effect on plant height, root length, dry weight and LAI of A.
esculentus. The interaction of season and paper mill effluent concentrations
only affected plant height and chlorophyll content of A. esculentus (Table
8).
Plant height, dry weight, chlorophyll content and LAI/plant of A. esculentus
were positively correlated with paper mill effluent concentrations in both seasons
(Table 9). Root length was positively correlated with paper
mill effluent concentrations in rainy season while it was negatively correlated
in summer season (Table 9). Chopra et
al. (2012) reported the maximum chlorophyll content in A. esculentus
at 25% concentration of distillery effluent. Malla and
Mohanty (2005) reported that paper mill effluent irrigation increase chlorophyll
and protein contents in Indian mustard plants (Phaseolus anreus L.) at
the 25 and 50% paper mill effluent concentrations followed by a decrease at
75 and 100% paper mill effluent. The findings were also supported by Sharma
and Agrawal (2010) who reported that the growth of A. esculentus
(L.) decreased when concentration of paper mill increased.
Vegetative growth of A. esculentus was decreased at higher concentrations
of paper mill effluent. It is likely due to that higher salt content in the
higher paper mill effluent concentrations, which lowered the plant height, root
length, dry weight, chlorophyll content and LAI/plant of A. esculentus.
Vegetative growth is associated with development of new shoots, twigs, leaves
and leaf area. Plant height, root length, dry weight and LAI/plant of A.
esculentus were higher at 25% of paper mill effluent it may be due to maximum
uptake of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium by plants. The improvement of vegetative
growth may be attributed to the role of potassium in nutrient and sugar translocation
in plants and turgor pressure in plant cells. It is also involved in cell enlargement
and in triggering young tissue or mersitematic growth (Thompson
et al., 2001). Chlorophyll content was higher due to use of 25%
paper mill effluent in both seasons and is likely due to Fe, Mg and Mn contents
in the paper mill effluent, which are associated w ith chlorophyll synthesis
Porra (2005). The 25% paper mill effluent concentration
contains optimum contents of nutrients required for maximum vegetative growth
of A. esculentus.
Effect of paper mill effluent on flowering of A. esculentus:
Numbers of flowers decreased as paper mill effluent concentration decreased
(Table 9). At flowering stage (60 days after sowing) the maximum
flowers (36.00 and 38.00) was noted with 25% paper mill effluent in both seasons.
Numbers of flowers/plant 26.00 and 28.00 were with control and 30.00 to 32.00
with 100% paper mill effluent in both seasons. Season, paper mill effluent concentration
and interaction of season and paper mill effluent concentration had no significant
(p>0.05) effect on number of flowers and number of fruits/plant (Table
10).
Nitrogen and phosphorus are essential for flowering. Too much nitrogen can
delay, or prevent, flowering while phosphorus deficiency is sometimes associated
with poor flower production, or flower abortion. Maximum flowering was with
the 25% paper mill effluent; it might be due to that this concentration contains
sufficient nitrogen and phosphorus. Furthermore, P and K prevent flower abortion
so pod formation occurs (El-Naggar, 2005). Flowering
of A. esculentus was lower at higher concentrations of paper mill effluent.
This is likely due to increased content of metals in the soil which inhibits
uptake of P and K by plants at higher paper mill effluent concentrations (Pandey
et al., 2008).
Effect of paper mill effluent on maturity of A. esculentus: The
most fruits/plants (34.00 and 36.00), fruit length (9.75 cm and 10.38 cm) fresh
yield/plant (760.54 and 775.86 g) and HI (750.05 and 770.16%) of A. esculentus
were with the 25% paper mill effluent in both seasons. Numbers of fruits/plant,
crop yield/plant and Harvest Index (HI) of A. esculentus were positively
correlated with paper mill effluent concentrations in both seasons (Table
9). Numbers of fruits/plant, crop yield/plant and Harvest Index (HI) of
A. esculentus were not affected by season, paper mill effluent concentration
and their interaction (Table 10). The number of fruits/plants
(23.00 and 26.00), fruit length (7.32 cm and 7.88 cm) fresh yield/plant (458.48
and 467.86 g) and HI (607.51 and 614.33%) of A. esculentus were with
the control while with 100% paper mill effluent the fruits/plants (28.00 and
30.00), fruit length (8.78 cm and 8.96 cm) fresh yield/plant (568.84 and 584.74
g) and HI (657.30 and 687.50%) of A. esculentus were in both seasons.
The role of K, Fe, Mg and Mn at maturity is important and associated with synthesis
of chlorophyll and enhances formation of fruits at harvest (El-Naggar,
2005; Naeem et al., 2006). The K, Fe, Mg
and Mn contents could benefit pod formation and yield of as it does for soybean
(Glycine max L.) as reported by Hati et al.
(2007). The 25% paper mill effluent favored fruits formation and crop yield
of A. esculentus. This is likely due to presence of K, Fe, Mg and Mn
contents in 25% paper mill effluent; higher paper mill effluent concentrations
lowered fruits formation and crop yield of A. esculentus.
Effect on biochemical constituents and micronutrients in A. esculentus:
The content of various micronutrients were positively correlated with concentrations
of paper mill effluent in both seasons (Table 9). Season,
paper mill effluent concentration and the interaction of season and paper mill
effluent concentration affected all the biochemical constituents like crude
fiber and crude carbohydrates, and metals like Cd, Cr, Cu, Mn and Zn in A.
esculentus (Table 11). Maximum crude proteins, crude
fiber and crude carbohydrates were recorded with 25% paper mill effluent concentrations
in both seasons (Fig. 4-6). Content of crude
proteins (r = +0.08 and r = +0.18), crude fiber (r = +0.14 and r = +09) and
crude carbohydrates (r = +0.03 and r = +0.07) were noted positively correlated
with paper mill effluent concentration in both seasons. The 25, 50, 75 and 100%
paper mill effluent concentrations affected Cd, Cr, Cu, Mn and Zn contents in
A. esculentus. Increased irrigation frequency could lead to increases
of metals in tissues.
Table 10: |
ANOVA for effect of paper mill effluent on flowering and
maturity stage of A. esculentus |
 |
ns: non-significant |
Table 11: |
ANOVA for effect of paper mill effluent on concentrations
of metals in A. esculentus |
 |
ns,*,**non-significant or significant at p<0.05 or p<0.01,
ANOVA |
|
Fig. 4: |
Crude proteins in A. esculentus after irrigation with
paper mill effluent. Error bars are standard error of the mean |
|
Fig. 5: |
Crude fiber in A. esculentus after irrigation with
paper mill effluent. Error bars are standard error of the mean |
|
Fig. 6: |
Crude carbohydrates in A. esculentus after irrigation
with paper mill effluent. Error bars are standard error of the mean |
The Cd, Cr, Cu, Mn and Zn contents in A. esculentus was highest with
100% paper mill effluent (Fig. 7, 8). Enrichment
of various metals was also observed by Fazeli et al.
(1998) in paddy crops after paper mill effluent irrigation.
|
Fig. 7: |
Content of Cd, Cr and Cu in A. esculentus after irrigation
with paper mill effluent. Error bars are standard error of the mean |
|
Fig. 8: |
Content of Mn and Zn in A. esculentus after irrigation
with paper mill effluent. Error bars are standard error of the mean |
|
Fig. 9: |
Contamination factor of various metals in A. esculentus
after irrigation with paper mill effluent. Error bars are standard error
of the mean |
The Contamination factor (Cf) was affected in both seasons (Fig.
9). The Cf of various metals was in order of Zn>Mn>Cu>Cr>Cd
in A. esculentus after irrigation with paper mill effluent (Fig.
9). The highest contamination factor was for Zn; the least was for Cd in
A. esculentus with 100% paper mill effluent in both seasons. The micronutrient
contents were higher at higher paper mill effluent concentration and likely
inhibited growth of A. esculentus. The 25% paper mill effluent favored
vegetative growth, flowering and maturity of A. esculentus. This is likely
due to optimal uptake of these micronutrients by crop plants, which supports
various biochemical and physiological processes.
CONCLUSION
The present investigation concluded that, paper mill effluent fertigation increased
EC, pH, OC, Na+, K+, Ca2+, Mg2+,
TKN, PO43-, SO42-, Fe, Zn, Cu, and
Mn of the soil in both seasons. Thus, fertigation improved the soil nutrient
status and affected the growth of A. esculentus in both seasons. The
most agronomical growth of A. esculentus was observed with 25% concentration
of paper mill effluent in both seasons. The growth of A. esculentus was
inhibited at higher concentrations (50% to 100%) it might be due to presence
of more content of heavy metals at these concentrations. Among both seasons,
maximum agronomical performance of A. esculentus was noted in rainy season.
The effluent has potentiality for its use as biofertigant in the form of plant
nutrients needed by A. esculentus crop plant. Therefore, it can be used
as agro-based biofertigant after its appropriate dilution for irrigation purposes
for the maximum yield of this crop. Further studies on the agronomic growth
and changes in biochemical composition of A. esculentus after paper mill
effluent irrigation are required.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
The University Grants Commission, New Delhi, India is acknowledged for providing
the financial support in the form of UGC research fellowship to the corresponding
author.
|
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