{
  "abstract": "Introduction: Nitrogen (N), an essential plant nutrient characterized by the lowest use efficiency and multiple loss pathways, challenges its management in rainfed castor. Therefore, a field experiment was conducted over three consecutive Kharif seasons (2022-2024) to develop an adoptable N management strategy for rainfed castor cultivation.\n\nMethodology: The study investigated the impact of eight N management modules viz. , Recommended rate of fertilizer (RRF) (40-40–25 kg N-P ₂ O ₅ -K ₂ O ha ⁻¹ ), 50% recommended rate of basal N (RRBN) +2 ml l ⁻¹ Nano Urea at 30 and 60 days after sowing (DAS), 50% RRBN + 2% Urea spray at 30 and 60 DAS, 75% RRBN + 2 ml l ⁻¹ Nano Urea at 30 and 60 DAS, 75% RRBN + 2% Urea spray at 30 and 60 DAS, 100% RRBN + 2 ml l ⁻¹ Nano Urea at 30 and 60 DAS, 100% RRBN + 2% Urea spray at 30 and 60 DAS, and recommended rate of phosphorous and potassium (RRPK) (00-40–25 kg N-P ₂ O ₅ -K ₂ O ha ⁻¹ ) and were arranged in randomized complete block design with three replications.\n\nResults and discussions: The study found that the combined soil and foliar application of N had a promising effect on crop productivity than soil-only N application. Aqueous solution of urea (2%) proved effective than Nano-Urea (2 ml L ⁻¹ ) for foliar fertilization of N. Specifically, application of 100% RRBN through soil (20 kg ha ⁻¹ ), followed by foliar sprays of 2% Urea at 30 and 60 DAS, improved growth and yield traits of castor. Consequently, it produced significantly higher seed yield (1546 kg ha ⁻¹ ), oil content (42.7%), and N uptake in castor (34.9 kg ha ⁻¹ ). Due to inverse relationship, N substituted via foliar fertilization enhanced the partial factor productivity (67.8–106 kg kg ⁻¹ ) compared to soil-only N application (32.5 kg kg ⁻¹ ). Foliar fertilization depletes the soil N pool as observed through +ve N balance index (10.7-12.1). Furthermore, 100% RRBN + foliar sprays of 2% Urea at 30 and 60 DAS found to be remunerative, besides enhancing energy (58,726 MJ ha ⁻¹ ), carbon (C) output (1,947 kg-CE ha ⁻¹ ), net energy and C-gain. These findings highlight that partial N substitution through foliar applications optimizes castor productivity, economics, energy, and environmental security in rainfed castor.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "University of Agricultural Sciences",
    "ICAR - Central Coastal Agricultural Research Institute"
  ],
  "article_type": null,
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 5,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Revappa Mohan Kumar"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Yamanura Madival"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Venkatesh Paramesha"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Ganiga Jadesha"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Gopalaswamy Ranganath"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/bnpggec058vhj.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.3389/fpls.2026.1969600",
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "bnpggec058vhj",
  "issns": [
    "1664-462X"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpls.2026.1969600/full",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "openalex",
      "1111|Agricultural Science and Fertilization"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7224124592",
  "pdf_url": "https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/plant-science/articles/10.3389/fpls.2026.1969600/pdf",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-10-28",
  "publisher": "Frontiers Media SA",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/bnpggec058vhj.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:19:25Z",
      "native_id": "10.3389/fpls.2026.1969600",
      "source": "crossref",
      "url": "https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpls.2026.1969600/full"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "earth",
      "origin": "openalex:1111|Agricultural Science and Fertilization",
      "subfield": "hydrology-soils"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Nitrogen management in rainfed castor: a comprehensive analysis of productivity, nutrient use efficiency, economics, energy flow, and carbon footprint",
  "title_text": "Nitrogen management in rainfed castor: a comprehensive analysis of productivity, nutrient use efficiency, economics, energy flow, and carbon footprint",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:19:25Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/bnpggec058vhj",
  "venue": "Frontiers in Plant Science",
  "versions": []
}