Spices

Black pepper (Piper nigrum L.) and small cardamom (Elettaria cardamomum Maton) are the two important spice crops grown under tropical humid climatic conditions, and they form essential components in the western and eastern cuisines as food additives and preservatives. Soil health management assumes great significance in spice crops as the current productivity levels of these crops show a disturbing downward trend. Besides biotic stresses, important factor contributing to reduced yields in spices is poor soil quality; a reflection of low carbon sequestration coupled with alarmingly higher nutrient mining from these acidic soils. Poor nutrient management strategies resulted in depletion of C reserves, imbalanced nutrient levels, and decreased nutrient cycling and processes due to decreased biological activity. Low pH and lower levels of organic carbon, K, Ca, Mg, B, and Zn are the major constraints in spice-growing soils. This, coupled with high soil erosion and associated nutrient losses in high-rainfall spice-growing areas, has further aggravated the problem. Long-term integrated nutrient management (INM) trials indicated that fertilizer input efficiency can be increased through rational use of inputs and scientific management. Adoption of INM techniques will not only enhance crop productivity but will also increase the total productivity and the efficiency of fertilizer use in these soils. While doing so there is an urgent need to augment supplies of soil amendments, organic manures, and fortified and customized fertilizers supplying secondary and micronutrients and bio-agents to sufficiently support nutrient supply in spice production systems. The chapter discusses the soil and climate suitability for these two major spices and soil fertility status of the major growing tracts, crop uptake potential, and the measures to meet the gap in nutrient supply through various fertilizer management strategies. Targeted yield equations for predicting nutrient requirements to get fixed yields in soils with varying fertility levels were standardized for site-specific nutrient management, and pepper-specific micronutrient application enhanced the yield and quality. The chapter also covers major cropping systems that are prevalent for these two crops.