Integrated Nutrient Management in Agricultural Soils

Integrated nutrient management (INM) brings together organic, inorganic and biological inputs to sustain long-term soil fertility, crop productivity and environmental quality. By balancing mineral fertilisers with farmyard manure, compost, green manures or bio-fertilisers, INM maintains soil organic carbon, enhances nutrient cycling and improves physical structure. Such systems harness microbial activity and root–soil interactions to release nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium in synchrony with crop demand. Adoption of INM has been shown to increase yields, reduce chemical inputs and mitigate greenhouse gas emissions, while addressing the challenges of land degradation and nutrient depletion on smallholder and commercial farms alike. Key elements include periodic soil testing, targeted fertiliser applications, incorporation of crop residues and integration of legume rotations. Through region-specific adaptation, this approach underpins food security, preserves water quality and contributes to climate-smart agriculture on a global scale.

Research from Nature Portfolio

Recent studies have demonstrated the importance of balanced mineral nutrition in rotation systems. In a rice–rapeseed sequence, a complete NPK regime outperformed partial applications by enhancing both grain yields and the soil’s indigenous nutrient-supplying capacity, confirming that nitrogen was most limiting, followed by phosphorus and potassium. Separately, long-term field trials in a high-rainfall region compared land configurations and organic amendments for baby corn. A broad-bed-and-furrow layout combined with farmyard manure and vermicompost led to the highest fresh-corn yield, improved soil organic carbon pools, elevated microbial biomass and increased dehydrogenase and phosphatase activities. The integrated approach also delivered superior returns and produce quality, illustrating how land management and organic integration can drive sustainable productivity.

Integrated Nutrient Management in Agricultural Soils publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in integrated nutrient management in agricultural soils across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Integrated Nutrient Management (INM): Strategic combination of organic, inorganic and biological nutrient sources to sustain soil fertility and crop productivity.

Soil Organic Carbon (SOC): Carbon component of soil organic matter, critical for structure, water retention and nutrient cycling.

Indigenous Nutrient-Supplying Capacity (INuS): Soil’s innate ability to release nutrients through mineralisation and weathering.

Bio-fertiliser: Formulation of living microorganisms that enhance nutrient availability to plants.

Cation Exchange Capacity (CEC): Measure of soil’s ability to hold and exchange positively charged nutrient ions.

References

1. Effects of fertilization on crop production and nutrient-supplying capacity under rice-oilseed rape rotation system. Scientific Reports (2017).
2. Impact of land configuration and organic nutrient management on productivity, quality and soil properties under baby corn in Eastern Himalayas. Scientific Reports (2020).
3. Municipal sewage sludge, aquatic weed compost on soil enzymatic activity and heavy metal accumulation in Kale (Brassica oleracea L.). Applied Water Science (2023).
4. Production and optimization of Jeevamrutha bio-fertilizer formulations for soil fertility and its role in waste minimization. Sustainable Chemistry for Climate Action (2023).
5. Integrated use of phosphorus fertilizer and farmyard manure improves wheat productivity by improving soil quality and P availability in calcareous soil under subhumid conditions. Frontiers in Plant Science (2023).