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Effect of VA Mycorrhizal Fungus and Bioformulations on Quality, Root Parameters, Microbial Analysis and Economics of Fennel under Northern Dry Zone (ZONE-3) of Karnataka

India is known as the land of spices from the times immemorial and has been the global leader in the production, consumption and export of spices. Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare Mill.) is one of the popular seed spice in India mainly grown in rabi season. It is locally known as saunf and belongs to the family Apiaceae (Umbelliferae). Fennel is native to Southern Europe and Mediterranean region. It is a hardy perennial, but is grown as annual or biennial. It is cultivated throughout the temperate and subtropical regions of the world for its aromatic seeds which are used for culinary purpose. Fennel seed is small, oblong or cylindrical, 6-8 mm. long straight or slightly curved yellowish brown. It International Journal of Current Microbiology and Applied Sciences ISSN: 2319-7706 Volume 9 Number 12 (2020) Journal homepage: http://www.ijcmas.com


Introduction
India is known as the land of spices from the times immemorial and has been the global leader in the production, consumption and export of spices. Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare Mill.) is one of the popular seed spice in India mainly grown in rabi season. It is locally known as saunf and belongs to the family Apiaceae (Umbelliferae). Fennel is native to Southern Europe and Mediterranean region. It is a hardy perennial, but is grown as annual or biennial. It is cultivated throughout the temperate and subtropical regions of the world for its aromatic seeds which are used for culinary purpose. Fennel seed is small, oblong or cylindrical, 6-8 mm. long straight or slightly curved yellowish brown. It
The volatile oil contents mainly anethole (50.03%) and fenchone (2.67%). It is widely used as flavouring agent in culinary preparations, confectioneries, cordials and liquors. Fennel oil is also used as important ingredient in several allopathic as well as ayurvedic medicines which are used in diseases viz., diabetes, bronchitis and chronic coughs, treatment of kidney stones and is considered to have diuretic and galactogogue properties. The use of bio-fertilizers and bioformulations play an important role as they help in availability and supply of plant nutrients thereby, providing a scope for reduction in use of costly chemical fertilizers which pollute soil in long term (Kale et al., 1991) 2 . It is reported that 10 to 20 per cent of crop yield can be increased with biofertilizer application alone (Brown, 1972) 1 . The increasing concern about the environment and socio-economic impact of chemical agriculture has led to seek alternative practices for agricultural sustainability and marketability by progressive farmers. To minimize the adverse effects of conventional agriculture (e.g. polluted water and soil by chemical fertilizers, entering pesticides to the food chain, compaction of the soil by heavy machinery etc.), different alternative concepts of production have been developed. Currently, low input cropping systems and innovation of resource management are of the most important objectives of sustainable agriculture.
Chemical free traditional farming technologies viz., bio-fertilizers, biodynamics, agnihotra (homa farming), panchagavya, Amrit Pani, rishi krishi, jeevamrutha etc., are gaining a new momentum not only in India, but also world over (Singh et al., 2007) 9 . These systems offer a means to address self-reliance, rural upliftment and conservation of natural resources. The connections between fungi and the roots of higher plants are referred to as mycorrhiza. Such interactions are mutualistic relationships undertaken by more than 80 per cent of plant species and approximately 6000 species of fungi. Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi enable the host plant to establish and grow more efficiently under biotic and abiotic stress conditions, including drought through a series of complex communications between the host and fungus (Salam et al., 2017) 7 . Keeping this in view the present investigation was undertaken to study the Effect of VA Mycorrhizal fungus and bioformulations on quality, root parameters, beneficial microbial count and economics of fennel under northern dry zone (Zone-3) of Karnataka.

Materials and Methods
The experiment was laid out in sandy loam soil with pH 6.5-8. Arabhavi is considered to have the benefit of both South-West and North-East monsoon. The mean annual rainfall for the past 20 years of this area is 449.25 mm, distributed over a period of six to seven months from April to November. The monthly mean maximum temperature goes up to 38.45°C (March) and monthly mean minimum temperature drops down to 11.55°C in January.
The data recorded for various observations on three experiments were subjected to statistical analysis using the Fischer's method of analysis of variance with 5 per cent level of significance for 'F' and 't' tests. Pooled analysis of 2017 and 2018 was also carried out to draw conclusion. Wherever the 'F' test was significant, the critical difference (C.D.) values were worked out at 5 per cent level of significance (Panse and Sukhatme, 1985) 5 (Table 1-5).
The improvement in quality of fennel with application of VAM and bioformulations may be attributed to the enhanced metabolic activities. Krishnamurthy and Sharanappa (2005) 3 also reported improved quality parameters of rose onion bulbs through different source of organic nutrient application.