Effect of long term organic manure application on soil properties, carbon sequestration, soil - plant carbon stock and productivity under two vegetable production systems in Himachal Pradesh

Changes in soil properties, carbon sequestration, carbon stock and productivity under two vegetable production systems supplied with five organic nutrient sources were evaluated after five cropping cycles. The results showed that cropping systems did not influence soil bulk density, carbon biomass, bacteria, fungi, enzyme activity, Fe, Mn, and Cu. However, maximum soil organic carbon (0.50%), N (166.6 kg ha(-1)), P (41.3 kg ha(-1)), K (162.2 kg ha(-1)), Zn (1.59 mg kg(-1)), soil carbon stock (11.3 t ha(-1) yr(-1)), plant carbon stock (54.3 t ha(-1) yr(-1)), carbon sequestration (2.8 t ha(-1) yr(-1)), total carbon stock (65.6 t ha(-1) yr(-1)), actenomycetes (33.2 10(5) cfu g(-1)), marketable yield (6.6 t ha(-1)), crop biomass (5.8 t ha(-1)) and leaf litter (0.40 t ha(-1) was recorded in tomato-cauliflower-radish/pea as compared to capsicum/cabbage-coriander-spinich/pea. All the measured variables were significantly influenced among nutrient sources. Maximum soil organic carbon (0.48%), bulk density (1.419 g cm(-3)), N (189.3 kg ha(-1)), P (54.8 kg ha(-1)), K(193.8 kg ha(-1)), Fe (64.6 mg kg(-1)), Mn(29.0 mg kg(-1)), Zn (1.83 mg kg(-1)), Cu (1.35 mg kg(-1)), soil carbon stock (12.5 t ha(-1) yr(-1)), plant carbon stock (65.8 t ha(-1) yr(-1)), carbon sequestration (3.0 t ha(-1) yr(-1)), total carbon stock (78.3 t ha(-1) yr(-1)), bacteria (84.0 10(6) cfu g(-1)), fungi (72.0 10(5) cfu g(-1)), actenomycetes (55.5 10(5) cfu g(-1)), microbial carbon biomass (1741.2 mu g g(-1)), dehydrogenase enzyme (0.023 mu g TPF g(-1)) and acid phosphatase enzyme (21.1 mu p-nitrophenol g(-1)), marketable yield (7.9 t ha(-1)), crop biomass (7.0 t ha(-1)), litter fall (0.54 t ha(-1)) were observed in treatment receiving 50% N supplemented with farmyard manure enriched rock phosphate and 50% N supplemented with vermicompost. The current study indicates that long term use of farmyard manure and vermicompost showed better yield, soil quality and greater amount of carbon stock and carbon sequestration under tomato-cauliflower-radish/pea cropping pattern.