Manish Kumar Mankur’s scientific contributions

The experiment was carried out during the year 2022-23 and 2023-24 in Kharif seasons at the Herbal Garden of IGKV, Raipur, Chhattisgarh, India. Two production systems were studied: F1 involved sole Turmeric, while F2 involved Eucalyptus intercropped with Turmeric in both the production system used FRBD (Factorial Randomized Block Design). Eight turmeric varieties were used i.e.: T1 - Suranjana, T2 - Selam, T3 – Chhattisgarh Haldi-1, T4 – Chhattisgarh Haldi-2, T5 – Roma, T6- Ranga, T7- NDH-98 and T8- Sonali. From the two year of investigation it’s found that mother rhizome length and width (cm) was found maximum in variety Chhattisgarh Haldi-2 and variety NDH-98 under sole turmeric as well as Eucalyptus intercropped with turmeric, while variety Sonali showed the minimum growth of mother rhizome in both the year of investigation and on mean data.

The experiment was conducted during the year 2022-23 and 2023-24 in Kharif seasons at the Herbal Garden of IGKV, Raipur, Chhattisgarh. Two production systems were studied: F1 involved sole Turmeric, while F2 involved Eucalyptus intercropped with Turmeric in both the production system used FRBD (Factorial Randomized Block Design). Eight turmeric varieties were used: T1 - Suranjana, T2 - Selam, T3 – Chhattisgarh Haldi-1, T4 – Chhattisgarh Haldi-2, T5 – Roma, T6- Ranga, T7- NDH-98 and T8- Sonali. The pooled rhizome fresh yield data for year 2022-23 and 2023-24 year shows that F2 (Eucalyptus + turmeric) (19.76 t/ha) yielded significantly less than F1 (Sole turmeric) (21.73 t/ha). Among varieties, Chhattisgarh Haldi-2 (25.18 t/ha) and NDH-98 (24.65 t/ha) recorded the maximum yield, while the lowest yield was recorded in Sonali (16 t/ha). A significant result found in production system and crop variety which showed that performance of varieties depended on the cropping system.

The study was conducted at the Herbal Garden, IGKV, Raipur (C.G.) from July to January during the 2023-24 session. The study aimed to evaluate the impact of various potting mixtures on the growth of Dahiman (Cordia macleodii) in a nursery setting. The experiment used a Complete Randomized Design (CRD) with three replications and nine different treatments. The treatments involved different combinations of potting mixtures: T1 (sand + soil + FYM, 1:1:1), T2 (soil + sand + vermicompost, 1:1:1), T3 (soil + vermicompost + FYM, 1:1:1), T4 (sand + soil + lemongrass compost, 1:1:1), T5 (sand + soil + FYM, 2:1:1), T6 (sand + soil + vermicompost, 1:1:1), T7 (sand + soil + vermicompost, 1:1:2), T8 (sand + soil + FYM, 1:1:2), and T9 (control). The T7 treatment (sand + soil + vermicompost, 1:1:2) stood out as the most effective, significantly improving all growth parameters for both Dahiman. These findings indicate that the T7 treatment (sand + soil + vermicompost, 1:1:2) is the best choice for promoting healthy growth in Dahiman seedlings.

The study titled "Impact of Nutrient Management on the Growth and Yield Performance of Geranium (Pelargonium graveolens) in a Karanj (Pongamia pinnata)Based Agroforestry System in the Chhattisgarh Plain" was conducted at the Herbal Garden, Indira Gandhi Krishi Vishwavidyalaya, Raipur (C.G.) during the Rabi season of 2022-23. The experiment laid down in a Randomized Block Design (RBD) with three replications and featured eight different combinations of organic manure as treatments. Various parameters related to the growth and yield of Geranium, including plant height (cm), number of branches per plant, collar diameter (mm), were assessed. The treatments comprised T1: N:P:K (0:0:0) Control, T2: N:P:K (30:30:30), T3: N:P:K (40:40:40), T4: N:P:K (60:60:60), T5: Recommended FYM @ 20 tonnes ha-1, T6: 50% (FYM+NPK) of (30:30:30), T7: 50% (FYM+NPK) of (40:40:40), and T8: 50% (FYM+NPK) of (60:60:60). Among these, treatment T8: 50% (FYM+NPK) of (60:60:60) exhibited significant superiority in all growth parameters compared to the other treatments

With the global population projected to exceed 9 billion by 2050, the ongoing imperative is to augment the production of food and create reserves. Particularly in developing countries, where the prevalence of appetite and food shortage is more pronounced, various strategies are being implemented to address the escalating demand and prevent food insecurity and famine. Challenges such as increasing population pressure, urbanization, and issues like soil degradation, soil salinization, and global warming contribute to food inadequacy, especially in significant parts of Asia. Agroforestry, characterized by mixed-species production systems centered around woody perennials, emerges as a potential solution to counter soil degradation and enhance site productivity through intricate interactions among trees, soil, crops, and livestock. The main focus of this chapter is to assess the viability of agroforestry systems as an agroecological approach to ensure the security of farmers' food in terms of availability, access, utilization, and stability. Smallholder agroforestry practices predominantly revolve around food production, either directly (yielding food grains, root crops, fruits, and vegetables) or indirectly (enhancing soil conditions and thereby fostering understorey crop productivity, particularly on degraded sites). Despite its benefits, agroforestry as a land use option has not received significant consideration from planners and the extension community. Factors contributing to this include irregularities in understorey crop productivity resulting in positive, negative, or neutral effects based on species, site, and management and a lack of public policy support. It is crucial to make conscious efforts in system administration and policy modifications to encourage the acceptance of agroforestry by the farming community.

Policy aiming at undoing the pervasive consequences of environmental deterioration increasingly includes ecological restoration. It entails actions that support the restoration of ecosystem structure and function, as well as the provision of products and services that go along with it. Ecological restoration, which is based on ecological theory, necessitates an interdisciplinary strategy involving soil science, hydrology, conservation biology, as well as the pertinent socioeconomic and political frameworks. Interventions for ecological restoration also rely on practical disciplines like forestry, horticulture, and agriculture. In order to promote collaboration among experts with the vast range of backgrounds and abilities required for effective restoration practises, we define some of the key approaches and challenges of ecological restoration. Reforestation, regrowth, and forest regeneration are now being acknowledged despite the continuous emphasis on deforestation in the field of land cover change. Such documentation had previously only been discovered for rich countries, but in more recent years, it has also been discovered in poor countries, and this appears to be the result of a variety of causes. To better understand these specific instances of reforestation and regrowth, and through this process, to better understand the dominant processes, pathways, and drivers of reforestation and forest regrowth on the landscape, this chapter brings together many of the authors working on this topic, studying regions from all over the world and Bharat.

Kelp, the sequoia of oceans encompasses approximately 25% of the global coastal expanse. The submerged ecosystem characterized by brown algae (Kelp) that flourish within a depth ranging from 0 to 50 meters forms the Kelp Forest. These underwater forests are renowned for their exceptional productivity and dynamic nature. Kelp forests are distributed across the globe, spanning the Pacific, Atlantic, Indian, and Arctic coastal oceans, excluding Antarctica. Kelp forests offer a variety of benefits to society (encompassing food, energy, recreational resources, and coastal protection), nutrient cycling, and carbon sequestration. Kelp demonstrates an exceptional growth rate, exceeding that of land-based plants by over 30 times. As a result, a single acre of kelp forest has the capacity to absorb up to 20 times more carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere compared to terrestrial forest. The ecosystem of kelp forests primarily revolves around the kelp, detritus, and the plankton-based food chain. Approximately 80% of kelp production enters the coastal ecosystem as detritus, which can take various paths, such as washing up on beaches, sinking to the seafloor, or being consumed and decomposed. Kelp forest ecosystems and the valuable services they provide are experiencing declines on a global scale, particularly in areas characterized by elevated seawater temperatures and rapid warming. In response to threats, marine managers are taking action to restore and mitigate these declines. Academic researchers have played a significant role in the restoration of kelp ecosystems. Various methods, such as transplanting, seeding, grazer control, and the implementation of artificial reefs, are actively used to restore kelp populations, with the choice of method depending on the underlying causes of decline. However, future restoration efforts may need to undergo significant changes to keep pace with the escalating rate of environmental change.