Year: 2020 | Month: June | Volume 7 | Issue 1
Glauconite: An Indigenous and Alternative Source of Potassium Fertilizer for Sustainable Agriculture
Rakesh
S.
Ravinder Juttu
Kamalakar Jogula
Bairi Raju
DOI:10.30954/2347-9655.01.2020.4
Abstract:
Potassium (K) is regarded as a key player in plant growth. It has a significant role in crop productivity as one of the major nutrients. Thus, the addition of K fertilizers has supreme importance in supplying K to the plant requirement. Present K demand is satisfying by highly soluble and concentrated mineral salts; when those salts suddenly introduced into environments, naturally established ecological diversity may become disrupted, ultimately soil fertility is deteriorated. Glauconite is a natural and abundant mineral rich in K which can be used as a K fertilizer source for benefiting the agriculture sector. India has the largest deposition of an indigenous glauconitic sandstone which could offer a cheap and locally derived source of slow-releasing K fertilizer. Usage of glauconite in farming replaces K fertilizers, viable in terms of economic and environmental perspectives, aids in the provision of additional nutrients along with K, nourishes soil health, and helps in achieving sustainability in agro-ecosystem.
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