Effect of cow based bioenhancers on growth yield and quality of kharif groundnut under organic condition

Introduction

The oilseed sector has been one of the most vibrant components of world agriculture. In India, among different agricultural commodities oilseeds stands second largest after cereals. Groundnut crop is the world's thirteenth most essential valuable food crop and fourth most dominant oilseeds crop. It is a prominent oilseed found in tropical and subtropical regions (Kumar et al., 2017) [1] . Groundnut, contributes significantly to nutritional security because its seed contains about 50% edible oil. The remaining 50% portion of the seed contains high quality protein (21.4 to 36.4%), carbohydrates (6.0 to 24.9%), calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, zinc, iron, riboflavin, vitamin E, niacin, folacin, thiamine and potassium were suggested by Das, (1997) [2] . Groundnuts are versatile oilseed crop and it is great commercially cash crop for both home as well as international market in number of under developed and advanced nations. According to data of FAOSTAT, (2023) [3] broadly, groundnut covers about 327 lakh hectares of agricultural land with the production of 539 lakh tonnes and productivity of 1648 kg per hectare. In India, during year 2022-23 total agricultural area under crop was 5.23 million hectares having production of 9.26 million tonnes and 1770 kg/ha. Productivity. Indian agriculture is well known for its multiple functions from facilitating environmental and food safety, employment generation and livelihood to nutritional (Sharma et al., 2025) [4] . The global population is projected to rise nearly 10 billion by 2050, intensifying the need for food (Kumari et al., 2024) [5] . The total groundnut area, production and productivity of Gujarat were 1.63 million hectares, 4.51 million tonnes and 2757 kg/ha, respectively (Anonymous, 2023) [6] . In Gujarat, districts where groundnut is widely cultivated are Junagadh, Rajkot, Banaskantha, Dwarka, Amreli, Jamnagar, Bhavnagar, Gir, Somnath and Kutch. Organic farming is not only about producing healthy food and fiber without the use of synthetic farm chemicals but also it ensures animal welfare and environment sustainability. The main organic farming principle is that allowing Mother Nature to give us food that nature intended. In recent years, one study shows that there has been extensive awareness worldwide on the excess use of artificial fertilizers and other chemicals which leads to environmental pollution and pest outbreaks. (Naresh et al., 2018) [7] . Employing high doses of fertilizers to achieve more yields is indispensable (Sharma et al., 2020) [8] under intensive cropping, but blanket application of chemical fertilizers is considered as one of the major constraints to sustain crop production (Sharma et al., 2021; Sharma et al., 2025 and Kumari et al., 2025) [9,4,10] . Recently next-generation precision farming technologies to enhance sustainable crop production and environmental sustainability (Yadav et al., 2026a and Kumari et al., 2026) [11,12] . With the global population steadily increasing, there is a growing need to boost agricultural productivity in order to ensure sufficient food supply for future generations (Gt et al., 2025) [13] . According to Jarvan et al. (2017) [14] in alternative agricultural systems, farmyard manure is one of the most valuable organic fertilizers for preserving fertility of soil prior to the invention of chemical fertilizers in the middle of the nineteenth century, the only known sources of plant nutrients added to the soil were farmyard manure and compost (Hack, 1982) [15] . Regular addition of organic materials, especially composted ones, boosted aggregate stability and decreased soil bulk density, which in turn enhanced soil physical qualities (Diacono and Montemurro, 2010) [16] . The application of cattle manure resulted in significant enhancement of soil organic carbon, macro-aggregate stability and amount of carbon protected within this aggregate. If animal manure is added in soil, it may increase biodiversity in the soil, which helps to cause alteration in composition, size and activity of soil micro flora, fauna and enzyme activities (Watts et al., 2010) [17] . An earlier analysis revealed that in terms of production, by addition of each tonne of farmyard manure is similar to 3 kg of fertilizer nutrients for single crops and 5 kg for double cropping. According to Gaur, (1986) [18] 1, 000 tonnes of fresh cow dung might theoretically include 15 tonnes of nitrogen and 4 tonnes each of P and K. Inputs such as cow-based bio-enhancers, organic manure and bio-fertilizer play a pivotal role in enhancing crop production supported study by Sharma et al. (2026) [19] . Organic matter encourages the creation of soil crumb, which makes the soil friable and permits proper air and water flow as well as rainwater absorption, acting on the physical 5 qualities of the soil. The application of organic liquid amendments such as Panchgavya and Jeevamrit results in superior growth of plant, crop yield, and quality. Panchgavya is a potent stimulant that enhanced not only yield and quality but also improved biological efficiency of the crop. (Gore et al., 2011) [20] . Additionally, multiomics like metagenomics, meta-transcriptomics, and bioinformatics techniques offer wonderful insights into soil microbial micro environment, ecology, minerals and nutrient cycling in oilseed cropping patterns (Yadav et al. 2026b and Kumari et al., 2026) [21,12] .

Materials and Methods

A field experiment was carried out during kharif season of 2024 on Certified Organic Farming Plot of Instructional Farm, Department of Agronomy, College of Agriculture, Junagadh Agricultural University, Junagadh (Gujarat). The soil of experimental location was with clayey texture and it was slightly alkaline in reaction having pH value of 7.8 and Electrical Conductivity of 0.51 dS/m. Initial Soil Organic Carbon (SOC) content of was calculated 0.61% and initially the nutrient status of soil was low in available nitrogen (236 kg/ha) and range of available phosphorus (26.74 kg/ha) and potash (249 kg/ha) were medium. During experimental study ten treatments were arranged in Randomized Block Design: T 1 (Absolute control), T 2 (100% RDF), T 3 (FYM 10 t/ha), T 4 (FYM 5 t/ha + Panchgavya 3% foliar spray at 25 and 50 DAS), T 5 (FYM 5 t/ha + Cow urine 3% foliar spray at 30 and 60 DAS), T 6 (FYM 5 t/ha + seed treatment with Beejamrit 300 ml/kg + foliar spray of Jivamrit 1250 L/ha at 30 and 60 DAS), T 7 (Vermicompost 2 t/ha), T 8 (Vermicompost 1t/ha + Panchgavya 3% as foliar spray at 25 and 50 DAS), T 9 (Vermicompost 1t/ha + Cow urine 3% as foliar spray at 30 and 60 DAS), T 10 (Vermicompost 1t/ha + seed treatment with Beejamrit 300 ml/kg + foliar spray of Jivamrit 1250 L/ha at 30 and 60 DAS) which replicated thrice. The crop was sown on 10 th July during kharif season 2024. Sowing of groundnut variety "GJG-32" was done by keeping row to row distance of 45 cm and plant to plant distance of 10 cm which was maintained by thinning during crop season. A seed rate of 100 kg/ha was used for sowing. All cowbased formulations were prepared on farm according to the method given by National Centre for Organic Farming, Ghaziabad (NCOF, 2006) [22] . Knapsack sprayer was used for foliar application which has spray volume of 500 l/ha. The initially prepared and filtered solution of cow based bioenhacers were sprayed on the crop foliage as per treatments. The crop was grown according to organic standards in the plot which is organically converted. To control pest and disease infestation organic or bio-pesticides were used as protection measures during crop growing season. As per standard procedure, observation on plant growth, yield attributes and yield were taken. The data of experiment which was collected during investigation was subjected to statistical analysis by adopting Fishers method of Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), as per the method of Gomez and Gomez, (2010) [23] . Critical Difference (CD) value was calculated whenever the 'F' test was found significant at 5% level.

Results and Discussion

Growth parameters Plant height

With the progression of crop season, plant height increased up to physiological maturity. It is evident from the data shown in Table 1 that the plant height recorded at harvest was significantly affected by soil application of various organic manures and foliar spray of cow based bioenhancers. Significantly highest plant height (32.93 cm) was measured with FYM 5 t/ha + Panchgavya 3 percent foliar application at 25 and 50 DAS (T 4 ) which was statistically at par with (T 2 ) (31.65 cm), T 6 (30.62 cm), T 8 (30.24 cm), T 7 (29.26 cm), T 3 (29.22 cm) and T 10 (29.17 cm) respectively. However, significantly lower plant height (23.41 cm) was documented under treatment T 1 (Absolute control). The increased in plant height might be due to application of FYM with Panchgavya in combination which have synergistic effect on plant growth and development. FYM resulted in production of growth stimulating substances which enhanced the nutrient availability for longer duration and thus have beneficial influences on growth parameters. Foliar application of Panchagavya increased the growth rate of crop since it contains the proper micro and macro nutrients, plant growth hormones and bio-fertilizers in form of liquid formulation. The rapid cell division and elongation were favored by presence of growth enzymes in Panchagavya. our findings supported by Patel et al. (2021) [24] and Mushar et al. (2023) [25] .

Number of branches per plant at harvest

Significant differences were recorded in number of branches per plant at harvest due to the application of different treatments. According to results shown in Table 1, treatment application FYM 5 t/h with Panchgavya 3 percent as foliar spray at 25 and 50 DAS (T 4 ) resulted significantly the greater number of branches per plant at harvest (7.76). The treatment was statistically comparable with treatments T 2 (7.42), T 6 (7.24), T 8 (6.95), T 10 (6.85), T 7 (6.35) and T 3 (6.34). On the other hand, treatment Absolute control (T 1 ) gave the lowest number of branches per plant at harvest (5.05). The notable a greater number of branches per plant is due to antagonizing action of auxin responsible for apical dominance which suppress terminal bud growth and then energy of plant is translocated towards the auxiliary buds and helps in stimulation of lateral branches. Beneficial effect of FYM may be due to the influences of organic matter in enhancing physio-chemical properties and biological environment of soil conductive to optimum plant growth. The results supported by Panchal et al. (2017) [26] and Sutar et al. (2019) [27] . ) revealed that number of root nodules per plant at 45 DAS significantly affected by application of various treatment. Data revealed that the number of root nodules per plant at 45 DAS (50.96) was counted under treatment T 4 (FYM 5 t/h with Panchgavya 3 percent as foliar spray at 25 and 50 DAS). This was found statistically on par with treatment T 2 (49.75), T 6 (48.65), T 8 (47.70), T 10 (46.88), T 7 (46.06) and T 3 (45.87). In contrast treatment T 1 (Absolute control) showed lowest number of root nodules per plant at 45 DAS (41.33) which differed considerably from the other treatments. The increase in number of root nodule per plant might be due to the better availability of nutrients. The presence of plant hormones such as Indole Acetic Acid and Gibberellic Acid in Panchgavya could create boost in the plant immune system and also helped to enhance the secretion of growth regulator in cell system. The results of present research were in strongly agreement with Avuduithai et al. (2010) [28] and Kumar et al. (2011) [29] .

Number of root nodules per plant at 45 DAS Further glance of data (Table

Yield and yield attributes Number of pods and mature pods per plant

The number of pods and mature pods (Table 2) per plant of kharif groundnut was significantly impacted by application various cow based bioenhancers with organic manures. Significantly the highest number of pods per plant (26.47) and mature pods per plant (24.97) was counted under treatment T 4 (FYM 5 t/h with Panchgavya percent as foliar application at 25 and 50 DAS). In terms of statistics, this treatment was comparable with T 2, T 6 , T 8 , T 10, T 7 and T 3 . The treatment T 1 (Absolute control) produced minimum number of pods and mature pods per plant. This might be due to the fact that FYM improves soil structure, water retention and aeration and creating a more favorable environment for growth and development whereas Panchgavya contains a range of beneficial microorganisms and nutrients. When used as foliar spray, it stimulates plant metabolism, enhance photosynthetic activity which helps to improve nutrient uptake from both soil and foliar sources. The enhanced metabolic processes and nutrient uptake due to Panchgavya may lead to increased photosynthetic activity which allows plants to produce more carbohydrates, which can be diverted to pod development and other growth processes. These results are in accordance with Singh et al. (2012) [30] in chickpea and Siddappa (2015) [31] in field bean.

Pod and haul yield

Crop yield is the complex function of physiological processes and biochemical activities, which modify plant anatomy and morphology of the growing plants. The data (Table 2) revealed that significantly highest pod (2538 kg/ha) and haulm yield (3690 kg/ha) of kharif groundnut was recorded with treatment T 4 (FYM 5 t/h with Panchgavya 3 percent as foliar spray at 25 and 50 DAS). This treatment was statistically similar with (T 2 ) 100% RDF, (T 6 ) FYM 5 t/ha + seed treatment with Beejamrit 300 ml/kg + foliar spray of Jivamrit 1250 l/ha at 30 and 60 DAS, (T 8 ) Vermicompost 1t/ha + Panchgavya 3% as foliar spray at 25 and 50 DAS, (T 10 ) Vermicompost 1t/ha + seed treatment Beejamrit 300 ml/kg with foliar spray of Jivamrit 1250 l/ha at 30 and 60 DAS, (T 7 ) Vermicompost 2 t/ha and (T 3 ) FYM 10 t/ha. Conversely the treatment T 1 (Absolute control) recorded significantly the lowest pod and haulm yield. FYM supply nutrient for longer time which helps in enhancing physiochemical and biological properties of soil which would have resulted into favorable soil atmosphere and ultimately higher yield. Besides this, application of FYM with Panchgavya increased the supply of easily assimilated major as well as micronutrient to plants and mobilized nutrients from unavailable into available form. Which results in more availability of nutrients from growth promoting substance produced by microbes present in Panchgavya. In conclusion enhancement in crop production led to good source-sink relationship, which in turn to increase the pod and haulm yield of groundnut crop. These results are in confirmation with the findings of Singh et al. (2022) [32] and Chaudhary et al. (2023) [33] .

Conclusion

Concluded that on the basis of our result obtained from one year of research data, it seems quite logical profitable and higher kharif groundnut production with better soil health under organic condition can be obtained by application of FYM 5 t/ha followed by 3 percent foliar application of Panchgavya at 25 and 50 DAS (T 4 ) or application of vermicompost 1t/ha followed by Panchgavya 3% as foliar spray at 25 and 50 DAS (T 8 ) in kharif groundnut (Cv. GJG-32) crop under the medium black calcareous soil of South Saurashtra Agro-climatic region.

Acknowledgement

AcknowledgementThe authors are acknowledge for Junagadh Agricultural University, Junagadh, Gujarat-362 001, India.

References

1. Kumar A, Tripathi MK, Pal V. Effect of sowing time on growth, phenology and yield attribute of summer groundnut (Arachis hypogea L.) in Allahabad. International Journal of Current Microbiology and Applied Sciences. 2017;6(4):2357-2365.
2. Das PC. Oilseeds Crops of India. Ludhiana: Kalyani Publishers; 1997. p. 80-83.
3. FAOSTAT. Organic Agriculture. Rome: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations; 2023. https://www.fao.org/home/in
4. Sharma V, Kumari A, Meena AK, Sharma AK, Meena PK, Gambhir AY. Advancing precision farming through microbial genomics and biotechnological tools: innovations for improving crop productivity and soil health. Growth. 2025;112:140.
5. Kumari A, Sharma V, Sharma AK. Role of biotechnology in advancing agriculture. In: Molecular Plant Breeding: Principles and Practices. 2024. p. 27.
6. Anonymous. Directorate of Economics and Statistics, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India. New Delhi; 2023-24. http://www.desagri.gov.in
7. Naresh RK, Shukla AK, Kumar M, Gupta RK, Singh SP. Cowpathy and Vedic Krishi to empower food and nutritional security and improve soil health: a review. Journal of Pharmacognosy and Phytochemistry. 2018;7(1):560-575.
8. Sharma V, Prasanna R, Hossain F, Muthusamy V, Nain L, Das S, Shivay YS, Kumar A. Priming maize seeds with cyanobacteria enhances seed vigour and plant growth in elite maize inbreds. 3 Biotech. 2020;10(4):154.
9. Sharma V, Prasanna R, Hossain F, Muthusamy V, Nain L, Das S, Shivay YS, Kumar A. Cyanobacterial inoculation as resource conserving options for improving the soil nutrient availability and growth of maize genotypes. Archives of Microbiology. 2021;203(5):2393-2409.
10. Kumari A, Gajera HP, Sharma V, Bhatt S, Sharma AK. Endophytic microbial advancement through NGS technology: unlocking the power of the genome. International Journal of Advanced Biochemistry Research. 2025;9(9S):1096-1114. doi:10.33545/26174693.2025.v9.i9Sn.5651.
11. Yadav A, Jajoria DK, Kumari A, Sharma V, Sodhaparmar H, Meena PK, et al. Next-generation precision farming technologies to enhance sustainable crop production and environmental sustainability. Bionature. 2026;46(1):64.
12. Kumari A, Meena AK, Sharma V, Modi K, Sodhaparmar H, Meena PK, et al. Next generation microbial biotechnology unlocking advanced-level plant breeding potential for sustainable agriculture: a review. Plant Archives. 2026;26(1):2509-2522. doi:10.51470/PLANTARCHIVES.2026.V26.NO.1.349.
13. GT VP, Sharma MR, Bhatt S, Dwivedi A, Kumari A. Molecular recognition and signaling cascades in plant immunity: PTI, ETI and beyond. Asian Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology. 2025;10(2):133-147.
14. Jarvan M, Vettik R, Tamm K. The importance and profitability of farmyard manure application to an organically managed crop rotation. ZemdirbysteAgriculture. 2017;104(4):321-328.
15. Hack FW. Organic recycling to improving soil productivity. In: Organic Materials and Soil Productivity in the Near East. FAO Soils Bulletin. 1982;4:10-15.
16. Diacono M, Montemurro FA. Review: long-term effects of organic amendments on soil fertility. Agronomy for Sustainable Development. 2010;30(2):401-422.
17. Watts DB, Torbert HA, Feng Y, Prior SA. Soil microbial community dynamics as influenced by composted dairy manure, soil properties and landscape position. Journal of Plant Nutrition and Soil Science. 2010;175(10):474-486.
18. Gaur AC. Recent trends in the recycling of crop residues. Journal of Maharashtra Agricultural Universities. 1986;11(2):127-133.
19. Sharma V, Prasanna R, Hossain F, et al. Elicitation and stimulation of nitrogen metabolism and growth by cyanobacterial inoculation in maize. Journal of Plant Growth Regulation. 2026;45:518-531. doi:10.1007/s00344-02511881-7.
20. Gore NS, Shreenivasa MN. Influence of liquid organic manures on growth, nutrient content and yield of tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) in sterilized soil. Karnataka Journal of Agricultural Sciences. 2011;28(2):158-167.
21. Yadav A, Jajoria DK, Kumari A, Sharma V, Sodhaparmar H, Meena PK, et al. Sulphur cycling microbiomes: biogeochemical transformations, stress resilience and next generation tools for improving oilseed crop yield and quality. Asian Journal of Biotechnology and Bioresource Technology. 2026;12(1):105-121.
22. NCOF. Package of Practices from Tamil Nadu for Organic Cultivation of Rice, Groundnut, Tomato and Okra. Ghaziabad: National Centre for Organic Farming; 2006.
23. Gomez KA, Gomez AA. Statistical Procedures for Agricultural Research. 2nd ed. New York: John Wiley and Sons; 1984.
24. Patel SP, Malve SH, Chavda MH, Vala YB. Effect of Panchagavya and Jeevamrut on growth, yield attributes and yield of summer pearl millet. The Pharma Innovation Journal. 2021;10(12):105-109.
25. Mushar RR, Ramani BB, Lakhnotra NK. Response of summer pearl millet [Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R. Br. emend. Stuntz] to various bio-enhancers under organic farming. The Pharma Innovation Journal. 2023;12(11):426-429.
26. Panchal P, Patel PH, Patel AG, Desai A. Effect of Panchagavya on growth, yield and economics of chickpea (Cicer arietinum). International Journal of Chemical Studies. 2017;5(2):265-267.
27. Sutar R, Sujith GM, Devakumar N. Growth and yield of cowpea [Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp.] as influenced by Jeevamrutha and Panchagavya application. Legume Research. 2019;42(6):824-828.
28. Avudaithai S, Kathiresan G, Kavimani R, Satheesh NK, Somasundaram S. Effect of Panchagavya and fertigation on growth parameters and yield attributes of groundnut and soil moisture content under drip irrigation. Green Farming. 2010;1(4):360-362.
29. Kumar RS, Ganesh P, Tharmaraj K, Saranraj P. Growth and development of blackgram (Vigna mungo L.) under foliar application of Panchagavya as organic source of nutrient. Current Botany. 2011;2(3):9-11.
30. Singh G, Sekhon HS, Kaur H. Effect of farm yard manure, vermicompost and chemical nutrient on growth and yield of chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.). International Journal of Agricultural Research. 2012;7(2):93-99.
31. Siddappa MK, Devkumar N. Organically grown field bean (Lablab purpureus) using Jeevamrutha and farm yard manure. In: National Conference on Sustainable SelfSufficient Production of Pulses through an Integrated Approach; Bengaluru. 2015. p. 105.
32. Singh M, Khan PMT, Dawson J, Verma R. Effect of vermicompost and Panchagavya on growth and yield of greengram (Vigna radiata L.). The Pharma Innovation Journal. 2022;11(4):1483-1487.
33. Chaudhary MR, Patel KM, Chaudhary MG, Chavda MH, Chaudhari HL. Study of growth, yield and yield attributes in late sown wheat as affected by different nitrogen doses and cow-based bio-enhancers. The Pharma Innovation Journal. 2023;12(3):3285-3288.