Soil Properties, Crop Yield, and Economics Under Integrated Crop Management Practices in Karnataka, Southern India

•Potential of rainfed areas can be unlocked through soil-nutrients-crop management practices.•Large-scale deficiency in secondary and micro nutrients was found in Karnataka state in India.•Integrated crop management practices could increase crop yield by 30–35% with benefit–cost ratio of 3 to 9:1.•Bhoochetana program demonstrated science-led development research for scaling-up impacts. Considering the importance of sustainable production practices with greater resource use efficiency, a study was conducted during 2009–12 to understand the soil properties, crop yield, and economics as affected by the integrated crop management (ICM) practices under the Bhoochetana (soil rejuvenation) program in Karnataka, India. Results from 3776 crop-cutting studies on different crops (cereals, pulses, and oilseeds) revealed that there is a vast spatial variability in case of various soil nutrients across different taluks of Karnataka. Balanced fertilizer application, both in rainfed and irrigated areas, directly influenced crop yields. Yields of cereals, legumes, and oilseeds were 3590, 1400, and 2230kgha−1 with improved management practices as compared to 2650, 1030, and 1650kgha−1 with conventional farming practices, respectively. Average net income estimated from conventional farming was Rs. 26,290ha−1, while it was Rs. 35,540ha−1 from improved management practices, which indicated that ICM practices resulted in an additional 35% income. The oilseeds performed better in terms of achieving higher net income and benefit–cost ratio while the cereals and legumes also have shown significant improvement in yield compared to the yields from conventional farming practices. The detailed findings on soil properties, yields of crops, and economics suggested that there is a vast potential for crop productivity improvement through ICM practices across different soil types and rainfall zones of Karnataka, India.