Journal of Experimental Agriculture International

Advances in Sustainable Agronomic Practices: Recent Evidence, Trade-offs and Pathways for Resilient Crop Production

Siddharth Saroha — 2026-10-16

Sustainable agronomy increasingly requires more than replacing one input or practice with another. The central challenge is to maintain reliable crop production while reducing nutrient losses, greenhouse-gas emissions, soil degradation, water demand, pesticide dependence and biodiversity loss under increasingly variable climatic conditions. This critical narrative review evaluates recent developments in agronomic management with emphasis on evidence published from 2015 to 7 August 2026, while retaining selected earlier foundational studies. The literature was examined across soil-conserving management, crop diversification, nutrient stewardship, organic amendments and biological inputs, water-smart irrigation, precision and digital agronomy, and integrated pest and weed management. The evidence indicates that the most consistent gains arise when practices are treated as context-dependent components of redesigned cropping systems rather than universal stand-alone technologies. Crop diversification has comparatively broad support for improving multiple ecosystem services without systematic yield penalties, although effect sizes vary with diversification type, climate and baseline management. Reduced tillage, residue retention and cover crops can improve soil protection and surface soil carbon, but yield and whole-profile carbon responses depend strongly on residue supply, rotation, soil texture, climate and implementation duration. Improved nitrogen management can raise nitrogen-use efficiency and reduce some loss pathways, yet interventions may transfer pollution among pathways unless ammonia, nitrate and nitrous oxide are assessed together. Organic amendments, biochar, microbial inoculants and biostimulants can improve selected outcomes, but responses remain especially sensitive to material properties and soil constraints. Alternate wetting and drying in rice and precision input management demonstrate resource-saving potential, although greenhouse-gas trade-offs, capital requirements and uneven evidence across farming systems limit simple generalisation. Across domains, long-term diversification, better targeting of limiting resources and combinations of complementary practices appear more defensible than single-practice sustainability claims. Future research should prioritise multi-year, multi-location factorial trials, full greenhouse-gas and nutrient budgets, deeper soil-carbon measurement, farm-economic outcomes, adoption constraints and decision rules that identify where particular practice bundles are most likely to deliver durable co-benefits.

Integrating Agrometeorology, Agronomy and Artificial Intelligence for Climate-Resilient Sustainable Food Production: A Critical Narrative Review

Vindya Sabbineni — 2026-10-17

Climate-resilient food production requires decisions that are meteorologically informed, agronomically plausible and adaptive to rapidly changing conditions. Agrometeorology provides observations and forecasts of weather and climate risk; agronomy translates those risks into crop, soil and management responses; and artificial intelligence can fuse high-volume, heterogeneous data, learn complex relationships and accelerate prediction. These domains are increasingly connected, yet their evidence bases remain partly fragmented. This critical narrative review evaluates how their integration can support sustainable crop production, with particular attention to the chain from environmental observation and prediction to management action and measurable resilience outcomes. Literature published from 1 January 2000 to 8 August 2026 was examined through relevant agricultural, multidisciplinary and biomedical scholarly sources, with supplementary citation searching and verification of bibliographic metadata. The synthesis shows that the strongest case for integration is not a replacement of process knowledge by data-driven prediction, but a division of labour: meteorological models define time-varying hazard, agronomic models constrain biological plausibility and management options, and artificial intelligence improves data fusion, bias correction, pattern recognition and computational efficiency. Evidence is comparatively mature for remote sensing, yield prediction and process-based crop modelling, and is rapidly advancing for machine-learned weather prediction. By contrast, end-to-end demonstrations that connect forecast skill to farm decisions, yield stability, resource-use efficiency, profitability and environmental outcomes remain limited. Hybrid crop-model and machine-learning approaches are promising, but uncertainty calibration, domain shift, sparse ground truth, interoperability, digital inequality and data governance remain substantial constraints. Digital twins offer a useful integration architecture, although agricultural implementations are still less mature than the concept implies. Future research should prioritise multi-environment prospective validation, decision-centred forecast verification, causal evaluation of management recommendations, uncertainty-aware hybrid modelling and equitable deployment. The most defensible conclusion is that integration can improve climate resilience only when predictive accuracy is coupled to agronomic actionability, transparent uncertainty and outcome-based evaluation.

Role of Cerium Oxide Nanoparticles in Improving Crop Drought Tolerance: A Review

K. S. Vidhya Bharathi — 2026-10-24

Drought stress is a major constraint on crop growth and productivity because it disrupts plant water relations, photosynthesis, mineral nutrition and cellular redox balance. Cerium oxide nanoparticles (CeO₂ NPs), also known as nanoceria, have received attention as potential agents for mitigating these effects. This review examines the physicochemical properties of nanoceria, its principal application routes and the physiological, biochemical and molecular mechanisms associated with plant responses to water deficit. Surface oxygen vacancies and Ce³⁺/Ce⁴⁺ redox cycling contribute to the enzyme-mimetic activity of nanoceria and its interactions with reactive oxygen species. The reviewed studies describe responses following seed priming, foliar application and root or soil exposure. Evidence from sorghum, mungbean, barley, rice, grapevine, apple and wheat indicates that suitable nanoparticle concentrations may reduce oxidative damage, enhance antioxidant defences, protect photosynthetic functions and improve plant water status. Reported responses also include osmolyte accumulation, greater membrane stability, changes in mineral nutrient homeostasis and altered expression of drought-responsive genes. However, these outcomes depend on the crop species, nanoparticle concentration, application method and severity of water deficit. Higher concentrations may produce adverse effects, and findings from composite formulations cannot always be attributed to unmodified nanoceria. Limited field validation, incomplete understanding of root-level responses and unresolved questions about cerium accumulation in edible tissues restrict immediate agricultural application. Further evaluation is necessary to determine the consistency, practical relevance and safety of nanoceria-mediated drought responses.

Regional Variation in Host Infestation and Larval Abundance of Cucurbit Fruit Flies in Major Cucurbit-Growing Areas of Bangladesh

Ruhul Amin — 2026-10-16

Cucurbit fruit flies are among the most damaging insect pests of cucurbit vegetables, but comparative information on host-associated infestation across major production areas of Bangladesh remains limited. A field survey was conducted in 12 upazilas across six districts, namely Dhaka, Bogura, Narsingdi, Manikganj, Cumilla and Jashore to describe variation in plant infestation, fruit infestation and larval abundance among locally important cucurbit hosts. In each crop–location combination, 10 plants were examined, and fruit infestation and the number of larvae per infested fruit were recorded. Plant infestation ranged from 10 to 60%, whereas mean fruit infestation ranged from 14.75 to 39.03%. The highest fruit infestation was recorded in sponge gourd at Dhamrai, Dhaka (39.03 ± 15.75%), followed by sponge gourd at Singair, Manikganj (33.53 ± 4.04%), bitter gourd at Belabo, Narsingdi (32.07 ± 18.27%) and bitter gourd at Monirampur, Jashore (31.71 ± 10.24%). Sweet gourd repeatedly supported comparatively high larval abundances, reaching 2.40 ± 0.17 larvae fruit⁻¹ at Burichang, Cumilla, 2.33 ± 0.29 at Singair and 2.17 ± 0.29 at Belabo. In contrast, several crop–location combinations with high fruit infestation contained relatively few larvae per fruit, indicating that field infestation and larval abundance captured different components of host–pest association. The survey demonstrates marked spatial and host-associated variation and supports location-specific monitoring, sanitation, trapping, fruit protection and coordinated integrated pest management in cucurbit production in Bangladesh.

Trait Association and Path Coefficient Analysis for Seed Yield Improvement in Yellow Mustard (Brassica rapa L.) Hybrids

Dushyant Singh — 2026-10-16

This investigation assessed genotypic and phenotypic associations between seed yield per plant and yield-contributing traits and estimated the direct and indirect effects of individual traits in yellow mustard (Brassica rapa L.). The experimental material comprised 84 genotypes: 20 lines, three testers, 60 F₁ hybrids derived from a line × tester mating design, and the commercial check Pitambari. The material was evaluated in a randomised block design with three replications across the 2023–24, 2024–25 and 2025–26 rabi seasons. Fourteen agronomic traits were recorded. Genotypic correlations of seed yield were positive with primary branches per plant (r = 0.732), biological yield per plant (r = 0.688), oil content (r = 0.622), siliquae per plant (r = 0.544), secondary branches per plant (r = 0.488) and test weight (r = 0.466). Days to maturity (r = −0.661) and days to 50% flowering (r = −0.585) showed negative correlations. At the phenotypic level, seeds per siliqua (r = 0.864), biological yield (r = 0.655) and oil content (r = 0.611) were positively associated with seed yield. Path analysis identified biological yield (0.655), siliquae per plant (0.636) and primary branches (0.568) as traits with comparatively large positive genotypic direct effects. Corresponding phenotypic direct effects were highest for siliquae per plant (0.921), biological yield (0.533) and test weight (0.513). These findings indicate that the evaluated yield components may inform selection within the studied yellow mustard material.

Morphometric and Morphological Variation among Eri Silkmoth (Samia ricini Donovan) Populations from Different Agroclimatic Zones of Assam, India

Nimiksha Devi — 2026-10-17

Adult morphological variability among geographically distinct eri silkmoth populations in Assam remains incompletely characterised. This study examined three populations of Samia ricini (ERI4, ERI5 and Kamrup1) and one population of Samia canningi (ERI 9395) originating from different agroclimatic zones of Assam. Seed cocoons were collected and adult moths examined at Assam Agricultural University, Jorhat, during 2023–2025. Eleven external morphometric characters, two male genital measurements and qualitative characters of the wings and abdomen were assessed. Differences among population means were evaluated using the critical difference at the 5% significance level. Among the S. ricini populations, hindwing length, abdominal length and clasper length differed beyond the corresponding critical differences for specified population pairs. The remaining external measurements, including body length, thorax length, forewing length, wingspan and antennal dimensions, did not exceed their respective critical differences among these populations. Samia canningi differed from the three S. ricini populations in abdominal length and aedeagus length, while additional contrasts were observed in hindwing and clasper lengths. Forewing and hindwing coloration, antemedian line patterns, hyaline spot shape, fringe characteristics and the distribution of white scales on the abdominal tergum also varied. These findings identify a limited set of quantitative traits and several descriptive characters relevant to the characterisation of the sampled populations. Because each sampled agroclimatic zone was represented by one population, the observed variation cannot be attributed independently to geographic or genetic factors.

Comparative Economics of Organic and Inorganic Soybean Production in Parbhani District of Maharashtra, India

R. P. Mane — 2026-10-17

This study compared the cost and return structure of organic and inorganic soybean production in Parbhani district of Maharashtra during the 2025-26 agricultural year. A purposive comparative farm survey covered Parbhani and Palam tehsils and six villages, with an equal allocation of 60 organic and 60 inorganic soybean growers. Primary data were collected through personal interviews using a pre-tested structured schedule and analysed using Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices cost concepts. Cost C3 was lower under organic farming (₹100,340.09 ha-1) than under inorganic farming (₹105,522.03 ha-1). Inorganic soybean recorded a higher main-product yield (25.67 q ha-1), net return over Cost C2 (₹44,909.43 ha-1), and return per rupee of expenditure at Cost C3 (1.33) than organic soybean (21.97 q ha-1, ₹29,397.11 ha-1, and 1.20, respectively). The average main-product prices received by the two groups were almost identical, indicating that the observed difference in gross income was mainly associated with yield rather than a price premium. Because the sample was purposively selected and the analysis was descriptive, the results represent observed economic differences among the surveyed farms and should not be interpreted as causal effects of production system.

Effect of Different Nitrogen Levels and Varieties on Growth, Yield and Economics of Fodder Oat

Ranjana Dawar — 2026-10-17

Multi-cut fodder oat (Avena sativa L.) cultivation has gained prominence as a strategic approach to meeting the demand for high-quality forage in livestock production systems. This can be achieved by applying an optimum amount of nutrients, particularly nitrogen. Therefore, this study investigated the effects of different nitrogen levels and oat varieties on the growth, yield, quality, and economics of multi-cut fodder oat. The experiment was conducted during the rabi season of 2022-2023 at the All India Coordinated Research Project on Forage Crops, JNKVV, Jabalpur. The experiment was laid out in a split-plot design involving five varieties as main-plot treatments, viz., PLP 27, JO 05-304, JHO 20-3, OL 1949, and RO 19, and four nitrogen levels as sub-plot treatments, viz., 0, 70, 105, and 140 kg/ha. Observations on various crop growth and yield parameters were recorded at the first and second cuts. The results indicated that growth parameters and yield were higher at the second cut than at the first cut. Among the varieties, JO 05-304 was superior, recording higher LAI (4.04 and 4.25) and leaf:stem ratio (0.76 and 1.18), along with the highest green fodder, dry fodder, and crude protein yields. Similarly, 140 kg N/ha produced the highest growth, green fodder yield (22.98 and 51.89 t/ha), dry fodder yield (3.53 and 8.89 t/ha), and crude protein yield. The combination of JO 05-304 and 140 kg N/ha recorded the highest gross and net returns (Rs. 99,507/ha and Rs. 64,107/ha, respectively). Thus, JO 05-304 with 140 kg N/ha was the most productive and economically favourable treatment under the agro-climatic conditions of Jabalpur.

Enhancing the Productivity of Pineapple cv. Queen through Foliar Application of Growth Promoting Substances

Dibyasen Patra — 2026-10-17

Erratic flowering patterns and non-uniform fruit development hinder commercial pineapple (Ananas comosus L. Merr.) cultivation. A field study (2023–2024) at OUAT, Chiplima, Sambalpur, Odisha, India, evaluated the impact of foliar nutrients (0.5% and 1.0% Ca as CaCl2; 0.5% and 1.0% B as Borax) and growth regulators (GA3 @ 100 ppm; NAA @ 200 ppm), individually and in combination (15 treatments, RBD, three replications), on phenology, yield, and biomass partitioning. Foliar application of 1.0% Ca + NAA @ 200 ppm (T10) performed best overall, accelerating floral bud emergence to 32.56 days and achieving the highest flowering percentage (72.61%), compared to 56.82 days and 48.34% in the water control (T15). T10 reduced the flowering-to-maturity duration by 40.14 days (126.34 vs. 166.48 days) and recorded the highest fruit weight without crown (613.3 g), length (10.1 cm), girth (35.7 cm), fruit volume (476.4 ml), pulp weight (393.3 g), and fruit yield (15.15 t ha^-1; a 49.85% increase over the control). Among single applications, 1.0% Ca (T2) gave the highest yield (13.45 t ha^-1), while 1.0% B (T4) maximized pulp proportion (72.03%). Application of 1.0% Ca + NAA @ 200 ppm at the 40-leaf stage provides an effective approach to synchronising flowering and optimising fruit yield in pineapple cv. Queen.

Proximate and Bioactive Characterisation of Pummelo (Citrus maxima) Albedo from an Assam Local Accession

Priyam Hazarika — 2026-10-17

Pummelo peel is commonly discarded following fruit consumption, although its albedo may provide a source of constituents relevant to food processing. This study assessed the physical characteristics, proximate composition and selected bioactive constituents of fresh albedo from the Assam local pummelo (Citrus maxima) accession Pum-3. Fully mature fruits, harvested at approximately 30 weeks after flowering, were obtained from the AAU-Citrus and Plantation Crops Research Station, Tinisukia, Assam. Fruit, whole-peel and albedo weights were recorded for three fruits. Moisture, ash and crude protein contents were determined using established analytical procedures, while total phenolic content and ascorbic acid were estimated by the Folin–Ciocalteu and dye titration methods, respectively. Analyses were conducted in triplicate, and results were expressed as means with standard deviations. Mean fruit, whole-peel and albedo weights were 1100 g, 460 g and 302 g, respectively. Albedo represented approximately 27.45 % of fresh fruit weight. The albedo contained 78 ± 2.97 % moisture, 0.098 ± 0.0072 % ash and 1.313 ± 0.0346 % crude protein. Total phenolic content was 652 ± 3.50 mg 100 g^-1, and ascorbic acid content was 29.629 ± 0.189 mg 100 g^-1. These findings describe a moisture-rich material with measurable phenolic and ascorbic acid contents. Further research is needed to assess its suitability for specific value-added food applications and to establish the effects of processing on these constituents.

Development and Validation of a Knowledge Test on Organic Farming among Farmers in Telangana, India

B. Swetha — 2026-10-17

Organic farming requires knowledge that extends from production principles and organic inputs to ecological management, certification and marketing. This study developed and preliminarily validated a concise knowledge test for assessing organic-farming knowledge among farmers in Telangana, India. An initial pool of 40 multiple-choice items was prepared from relevant literature, technical materials and expert consultation and organised across four domains: organic inputs; principles and practices; ecological and environmental aspects; and certification and marketing. The preliminary items underwent expert face/content review and item analysis using difficulty index, discrimination index and point-biserial correlation. Seventeen items satisfying prespecified criteria were retained. The final instrument showed acceptable but modest internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.70). It was subsequently administered to 120 farmers, including 60 organic and 60 conventional farmers. The reported analysis shows an overall distribution of 16 farmers with low knowledge, 61 with medium knowledge and 43 with high knowledge; however, these counts conflict with the organic/conventional subgroup frequencies, which sum to 42, 51 and 27, respectively. Because respondent-level records were unavailable for verification, category prevalence is treated as provisional rather than reconciled by assumption. The analysis also reported a significant between-group difference in knowledge scores (t = 7.69, p < 0.01), while exploratory analyses indicated associations with several socioeconomic, institutional and behavioural characteristics. The instrument offers a compact basis for knowledge-gap assessment and training-needs diagnosis, but the present evidence should be regarded as preliminary because the category-count discrepancy, expert-panel details, quantitative content-validity indices, external validation and complete inferential model diagnostics remain unresolved. Further validation against the original data and across locations and certification contexts is warranted.

Socio-Economic Characteristics of Organic Turmeric Growers in Hingoli District of Maharashtra, India

Mitali S. Nomulwar — 2026-10-22

Organic turmeric cultivation is an important component of farming systems in Hingoli district, Maharashtra. The present study was undertaken to examine the socio-economic characteristics of organic turmeric growers in Hingoli district of Maharashtra. Hingoli district was purposively selected because of its importance in turmeric cultivation and the presence of organic turmeric growers. Basmath and Aundha Nagnath tehsils and eight villages were selected. A total of 120 organic turmeric growers were selected. Primary data were collected through personal interviews using a pre-tested structured interview schedule for the agricultural year 2025–26. The socio-economic characteristics considered in the study included age, gender, education, family size, landholding, occupation, livestock position, farm buildings and cropping pattern. The collected data were analysed using frequency, percentage and descriptive measures. The findings showed that the majority of organic turmeric growers were male and belonged to the middle-aged group. Most of the respondents had formal education, with secondary education constituting the largest proportion, while agriculture was the principal occupation of the majority of the growers. Organic turmeric cultivation was mainly practised by small and semi-medium landholding farmers, who together accounted for 71.66 per cent of the respondents. The average family size was 5.64 members per household. Livestock formed an important component of the farming system, with cows constituting the major share, followed by buffaloes and bullock pairs. Residential houses were available to all respondents, and cattle sheds and engine pump houses were also present. Among farm implements, weeding hooks and sickles were the most commonly available implements. The growers followed a diversified cropping pattern across Kharif, Rabi, summer and annual seasons, with turmeric occupying the largest area among individual crops at 0.98 ha (22.95%). The cropping intensity was 149.33 per cent, indicating effective utilization of available land through multiple cropping. Overall, the study revealed that organic turmeric cultivation was predominantly practiced by middle-aged male farmers belonging to small and semi-medium landholding groups, with agriculture as their major occupation and turmeric occupying an important position in their diversified farming system.

Plant Volatile Blends as Insect Attractants in Semiochemical Based Pest Management

Aswini Venkatesh — 2026-10-17

Plants release complex mixtures of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that mediate interactions with herbivores, pollinators, natural enemies and other organisms. These volatiles are generally emitted as blends whose composition and abundance vary with plant species, tissue type, developmental stage, herbivory, microbial interactions and environmental conditions. Major groups include terpenoids, phenylpropanoid and benzenoid compounds, volatile fatty acid derivatives and amino acid-derived volatiles. Plant odours provide chemical information that insects use to locate hosts and other resources, and can influence interactions between plants and insects. This ecological function has led to increasing interest in plant-derived volatiles as semiochemicals for insect monitoring and management. Plant-derived volatile cues have been investigated in mass trapping, attract-and-kill and push–pull strategies. However, their effectiveness depends not only on chemical identity but also on concentration, blend composition, component ratios, release rate and environmental conditions. This mini-review examines the chemical diversity and ecological functions of plant volatile blends, the factors influencing their emission and their applications in insect attraction and semiochemical-based pest management.