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Spot light /Institution
Soil Fertility Research
Institute, Lahore
Punjab Agriculture Department has been carrying out an ambitious
plan for maintaing the database of soil related facts in the
province. Under the plan approximately 20 percent of total
cultivated area of Punjab has been covered.
Land is the principal source for Agricultural production. In
Pakistan, there is a limited scope to bring new lands under
cultivation due to scarcity of irrigation water, therefore,
National Food Security will require high yield per acre foot of
water as well as per hectare of land, which will increase the
demand of optimum and balanced use of plant nutrients.
Accordingly, the project entitled Rapid Soil Fertility Survey
& Popularization of the use of Fertilizer in Pakistan was
launched as a joint venture of FAO and Government of Pakistan in
1958 in collaboration with Department of Agriculture, Government
of West Pakistan. On expansion in 1962, it was transferred to
Provincial Government with the status of an independent
Directorate in Research Wing of Agriculture Department.
Since inception, the Institute is engaged in investigating the
nutrient dynamism in soils through field and laboratory
techniques. Increasing agricultural production by improving
plant nutrition management together with a better use of other
production factors is another activity of the institute. The
comparative efficiency of various fertilizer materials has been
evaluated for their effective use in the field. Catering of
nutrient needs of different kharif and rabi crops under various
Agro Eco-zones and cropping systems, evaluation of groundwater
quality for irrigation purposes, technology for reclamation of
salt affected soils and their post care management have also
been developed and disseminated.
Priority issues for planning like nutrient dynamics and
indexation in cropping systems, nutrient requirements for new
genotypes, soil-test crop response calibration studies,
standardization and calibration of analytical methods,
sustaining agricultural productions through Integrated Plant
Nutrition System (IPNS), saline agriculture, long-
term macro and micronutrients balance sheet studies in major
cropping sequences are being actively undertaken.
SOIL AND WATER TESTING LABORATORIES
A network of Soil and Water Testing Laboratories is in operation
in 31 districts of the Punjab. These laboratories are equipped
and have the capacities to carryout analysis of soil, water,
fertillizer and plant materials for all nutrients.
Soil test values are of little use unless properly calibrated
against crop response to applied fertilizer in field
experiments. The ultimate objective, of course, is to obtain a
value that will help to predict the amount of nutrients needed
to supplement the supply in the soil. this remains a continuous
activity for transforming test data into recommendations. These
laboratories are entrusted with the following activities:
A. ACTIVITY-i RESEARCH
Establishing critical limits for essential plant nutrient
elements
Nutrient dynamics and their indexation
Standardization of analytical techniques
Soil test crop response calibrations for economic use
Plant nutrient balance sheets for future planning
Changes in soil test levels corresponding to fertilizer
applications
Pooling and processing of research data to formulate general
and site specific fertilizer recommendations for all maor
and minor cro s
Yield constraint research
Build-up and residual studies on Phosphorus (P) and Zinc (Zn)
B. ACTIVITY-2 ADVISORY
Assessing water quality and nutrient status for advisory
services to farmers
Site specific recommendations and their refinement
Monitoring of quality inputs and irrigation waters
Improving Fertilizer Use Efficiency (FUE) and productivity
through Integrated Plant Nutrient S stems (IPNS)
Role of micron utrients in crop production
Since inception 4.5 million soil, water, fertilizer and plant
samples have been analysed in theses laboratories. Approximately
20% of total cultivated area of Punjab has been covered under
soil testing services. Categorisation of soil parameters, on the
basis of pooled data is covered in achievements. Moreover, 0.140
million water samples were analysed for their suitability for
irrigation purposes. About 70% of these samples were found unfit
for irrigation purposes. Advice for use of these brackish waters
is continuously disseminated to farmers for better management of
their soil and water resources.
In Punjab, salinity and sodicity have been a great constraint in
proper utilization of land resources. The calamity is of
continuous nature and each year more fertile fields are rendered
unproductive. It was, therefore, necessary to innovate
technology to arrest trends disadvantageous to economical
production of crops and to reverse this process through
reclamation of salt-affected soils by using suitable soil
amendments.
Accordingly use of Gypsum has been properly demonstrated and
recognised as an economical means for restoration of soil
productivity.
ACHIEVEMENTS
TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPED
Fertilizer plays a key role in crop production and contributes
more than 50% in crop yield. New varieties demand respective
technologies best suited to different Agroecological zones. The
following remained the main focus to accelerate production.
Established the best time and method of fertilizers
application for various crops to harvest potential yields
Investigated the needs of K for sugarcane, K, Zn, Fe, Cu for
potatoes, Zn, for rice, B and Zn for cotton besides N&P
Worked out the economics of fertilizer use. The Value Cost
Ratio (VCR) of recommended doses of different crops were
calculated to be as 3:1 in cereals, 4:1 in sugarcane and cotton
and 6:1 in potatoes
Application of P at 1st irrigation was found equally good to
get optimum yield
Demonstrated the impact of balanced fertilization to increase
profitability and arrest soil mining
Reclamation technology for problem soils was innovated and
properly displayed
Developed quick test methodology for assessing P-fixation
capacity of soil
RESEARCH ACHIEVEMENTS
Developed indexed, site specific fertilizer recommendation
system for major cash / grain crops
Delineated soil fertility status of Punjab soils and water
quality of running tube wells
Established critical limits for macro and micro nutrients and
standardized test methodologies
Identified different biological constraints with 50%
contribution of fertilizer towards yield gap
Formulated nutrient recipes of all major and minor crops
Magnitude of deficiency for NPK is found to be 95%, 90% and
30%, respectively throughout the province
The analytical data revealed that 57%, 50%, 21% and 1% soils
in Punjab are deficient in Sine (Zn), Boron (B), Iron (Fe) and
Copper (Cu), respectively
On the basis of available data, delineated soil profile
mapping at district & province levels
Recently potash dynamics in the soil were worked out in
collaboration with International Potash Institute (JPJ) for
raising crop yields
FUTURE PLANS
Major stress is being planned on micronutrients and stress
environment
Soil profile mapping using Geographic Information System (GIS)
and Remote Sensing (RS) by coordinates of Global Positioning
System (GPS)
Environmental impacts of fertilizers, industrial and city
wastes
Refining analytical methods and critical limits for nutrients
in various cropping patterns
Future of our agriculture finds hopes in following two
approaches:
1. Total Package Approach (TPA)
2. Maximum Economic yield Approach (MEYA)
Both of these can only be harnessed if soils resources are made
a base for future planning.
The available data indicates that:
1. Tremandous improvement has been seen in terms of improved
production and savings on those farms following soil test based
fertilizer recommendations
2. Problems soils have experienced restoration of health through
reclamation techniques formulated by this Institute.
Contact Details
For Information on any aspect of soil fertility
Contact Dr. Khalid Hussain Gill Director
(042) 5862073, 5866350 Fax No. (042) 5862073
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