Assessment of Soil Particle Distribution, Primary Nutrient Status and Their Response to Environmental Factors Across the Bengal Gram Productive Regions of Sangareddy, Telangana

The present study was carried out to know the fertility status of rabi grown bengal gram soils of Sanga Reddy district, Telangana state by thorough field survey during the year 2022-2023. Total of 150 soil samples (50 samples from each productivity regions) from soil surface (0 - 15 cm depth) across three productivity regions high (592-613 kg acre-1), medium (571-592 kg/acre) and low (<571 kg acre-1) were collected from the study area before sowing of the crop and analyzed for the soil particle size distribution, available Nitrogen(N), Phosphorous(P) and Potassium(K). Their status was quantified and analytical data was interpreted and statistical parameters like range, mean, standard deviation and coefficient of variation were calculated. The sand, silt and clay content in high, medium and low productivity regions averaged 32.1 %, 26.7%, 41.1 %; 33.7 %, 26.1 %, 40.1 % and 37.4 %, 25.1 %, 37.2 % respectively. The soil available N, P and K showed mean values of 224.3 kg ha-1, 209.4 kg ha-1 and 204.0 kg ha-1; 32.0 kg ha-1, 28.4 kg ha-1, 24.8 kg ha-1 and 316.4 kg ha-1, 311.0 kg ha-1, 306.1 kg ha-1 in high, medium and low productivity regions. Low productivity areas had the largest mean sand concentration, which influenced soil particle aggregation. Silt content varied greatly, particularly in medium and low productivity zones, whereas clay content varied the most in high productivity regions. Available N decreased from high to medium and medium to low production areas. Fluctuations in available P and K showed a wide distribution within each category, as evidenced by large standard deviation and coefficient of variation values across productivity regions, particularly for potassium, emphasising the importance of considering diverse soil conditions and factors influencing potassium availability when developing fertilisation strategies.