RESUMEN
Agricultural productivity relies upon energy input in the form of improved seeds, fertilizers, chemicals, irrigation and mechanization including management practices. This energy input is crucial for enhancing crop yields and meeting the demands of an ever-growing population. The increasing demand for rice production from an ever-increasing population and the dwindling nature of natural resources as a result of their continuous and excessive use underscore the urgency of studying energy use efficiency and sustainability in rice production. By conducting this experiment, the goal was to assess the yields, economics, and energy use efficiencies in rice. The experiment employed a Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with three replications, comprising ten treatment combinations viz. US-312 + 60:30:20 kg NPK ha-1, US-312 + 0:30:20 kg NPK ha-1, US-312 + 60:0:20 kg NPK ha-1, US-312 + 60:30:0 kg NPK ha-1, US-312 + 0:0:0 kg NPK ha-1, Sukhadhan-2+60:30:20 kg NPK ha-1, Sukhadhan-2+0:30:20 kg NPK ha-1, Sukhadhan-2+60:0:20 kg NPK ha-1, Sukhadhan-2+60:30:0 kg NPK ha-1, Sukhadhan-2+ 0:0:0 kg NPK ha-1. Results revealed that the highest grain yield and yield attributes were obtained from US-312 + 60:30:20 kg NPK ha-1 (4.98 t ha-1) followed by US-312 + 60:30:0 kg NPK ha-1 (4.76 t ha-1), and US-312 + 60:0:20 kg NPK ha-1 (4.54 t ha-1). The highest energy use efficiency of 3.95 was observed under US-312 + 60:30:0 kg NPK ha-1 which was supported by the highest output energy obtained from grain and biomass yield (153 GJ ha-1) and the highest net energy (117 GJ ha-1). The benefit-cost ratio was found highest in US-312 + 60:30:20 kg NPK ha-1 (1.98), signifying its economic viability and potential profitability. In the context of the western mid-hills of Nepal, the rice variety US-312, coupled with a nutrient composition of 60:30:20 kg NPK ha-1 proved to be an optimal selection. This combination demonstrated higher grain yields and noteworthy economic efficiency.
RESUMEN
Tuta absoluta (Meyrick) (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae), Tomato Leaf Miner (TLM) moth, is one of the notorious oligophagous pests of solanaceous crops that mines primarily on mesophyll of leaves as well bore tomato fruits. In Nepal, T. absoluta, the pest that has a potential to create loss up to 100%, was detected in 2016 in a commercial tomato farm at Kathmandu. So, the farmers and researchers must heed for effective management contrivance to improve the yield of tomato in Nepal. The devastating nature of T. absoluta causes its unusual proliferation so that it needs dire study of its host range, potential damage and sustainable management strategies. We discussed the data and information on T. absoluta available in several research papers comprehensively and provided succinct information on occurrence of T. absoluta in the world, its biology, life cycle, host plants, yield loss due to T. absoluta and several novel control tactics which helps farmers, researchers, policy makers to sustainably rise the tomato production in Nepal as well as in global context to attain food security. Sustainable pest management strategies such as Integrated Pests Management (IPM) approaches incorporating and prioritizing biological control methods with usage of chemical pesticides with less toxic active ingredient can be encouraged to the farmers for controlling the pests sustainably.
