Conjoint Application of Nutrients as Customized Fertilizers Influences Growth and Yield Characteristics of Brassica juncea L., Augmented Profitability and Nutrient Use Efficiency Indices

In few past decades, multi-nutrient deficits has emerged out as globally increasing common serious concern in most of the soils causing continuous decline in partial factor productivity. A novel concept in the realm of nutrient management as "custom-made fertilizers", has evolved from scientific studies on crop and soil-specific. Encouraging use of customized fertilizers may overcome the addressed issue of increasing diverse deficiencies of soil nutrients besides boosting crop productivity and striking soil fertility deterioration in a long-run. This study was aimed to evaluate the influence of customized fertilizers on crop growth, productivity and nutrient acquisition in Brassica juncea L. The study was comprised of nine treatments of complex, mixed and customized fertilizers in different ratios (%) as 0:0:0 (NPK-no nutrients), 28:28:0 (NPK), 18:46:0 (NPK), 20:20:0:13 (NPKS), 18:18:18 (NPK), 17:17:17 (NPK), 19:19:19 (NPK), 15:15:15:9:0.5:0.2 (NPKSZnB) and 17:17:17:4:0.5:0.2 ((NPKSZnB) including control, in randomized complete block design with three replications. Customized fertilizers (15:15:15:9:0.5:0.2 and 17:17:17:4:0.5:0.2) significantly improved growth and yield parameters. The percent increase in yield was lies between 14.4 to 16.4% and 10.9 to 12.8%, respectively over mixed formulations. Both the customized fertilizers, recorded higher oil content (41.8 and 41.6%) and oil productivity (1113 and 1073 kg ha(-1)), proved more economical and profitable (48.6 and 42.7% more net monitory return) with higher benefit-cost ratio (2.49 and 2.41). Moreover, both the treatments registered higher values of PFPN (35.2 and 32.9), AEN (15.1 and 12.7), NRE (60.0 and 53.9%) and CPE (19.2 and 17.9 kg ha(-1) day(-1)), respectively. Crop specific readymade customized fertilizers play significant key role in mitigating plant nutrient stress and proven more efficient in enhancing productivity, profitability and nutrient efficiency indices.