Wheat Cultivation Soil Health and Yield Under Natural Farming Treatments

A 2026 study by Kartik Gajjar compares nine Natural Farming System (NFS) treatments against a Conventional Farming System control in wheat cultivation. The dataset contains measurements of soil nutrient levels, microbial enzyme activities, crop yields, and economic metrics like Benefit-Cost Ratio. It reports fold increases in soil organic carbon, nitrogen, and potassium, along with grain yields up to 3807 kg/ha under NFS.

Use Cases

• Compare soil nutrient levels like organic carbon, available nitrogen, and potassium across nine NFS treatments and a CFS control.
• Analyze the correlation between microbial enzyme activity measurements and crop yield metrics (grain and straw kg/ha).
• Model the Benefit-Cost Ratio (BCR) based on treatment inputs such as groundnut haulm mulch and Ghanjeevamrit application rates.
• Examine the reported enrichment of specific beneficial bacterial genera (e.g., Microvirga, Gp6, Rhizobium) in relation to soil health parameters.

Strengths

• Dataset reports specific, quantified improvements, such as up to 2.47-fold increase in soil organic carbon under NFS treatments.
• Includes multiple analytical dimensions: soil chemistry (nutrients), biology (microbial diversity via 16S/ITS), agronomy (yield), and economics (Benefit-Cost Ratio).
• Study design directly compares nine distinct NFS treatment variations against a conventional farming control.

Limitations

• The dataset is very small (45.0 KB), indicating limited scope and likely a small number of experimental plots or samples.
• Findings are specific to a single study's conditions; applicability to other soil types, climates, or crops is unknown.
• Economic viability of NFS is noted as less favorable in non-livestock scenarios, a key contextual limitation.

Provenance

Source

Kartik Gajjar via figshare.

Collection Method

Experimental field study comparing farming systems, with soil and yield measurements and metagenomic sequencing (16S rRNA and ITS).

Time Range

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Freshness

Last updated March 2026.

Geography

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