NanoKheti · Innovations & Patents
Science for your farm
Simple, honest answers to common soil and crop problems, guided by our Technical Mentor and Board Advisor, Dr. Abhishek Mathur. Pick your problem below.
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More topics coming soon: crop residue and stubble, animal care, fruits and vegetables.
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Dr Abhishek Mathur explains how soil organic carbon supports microbes, nutrient cycling, soil structure and practical soil health management.
Read →Salty or white-crust soilFarming in salty soil: what beneficial microbes can doWhite crust on your field? In greenhouse trials, salt-tolerant soil bacteria kept maize and sorghum alive in salty soil. What it means for Indian farmers.
Read →Pests and crop diseasesCan biochar and friendly microbes protect brinjal from Phomopsis blight? What a 2026 trial foundIn a 2026 pot trial co-authored by Dr. Abhishek Mathur, biochar with Trichoderma and Pseudomonas cut brinjal Phomopsis blight by two-thirds and doubled yield.
Read →All topics · 18 articles
Answers by topic
Salty or white-crust soil2 articles
Quick answer
First, test your soil for pH and EC at your Krishi Vigyan Kendra or Soil Health Card lab. "Salty" soil can be saline or sodic (usar), and they need different treatment.
Saline soil: wash the salt below the roots with good water and drain it away. Sodic soil: gypsum, as the soil test advises. In greenhouse trials co-authored by Dr. Mathur, salt-tolerant soil bacteria kept maize alive in salty soil. That is early research, not yet a product.
- Farming in salty soil: what beneficial microbes can doWhite crust on your field? In greenhouse trials, salt-tolerant soil bacteria kept maize and sorghum alive in salty soil. What it means for Indian farmers.
- Can soil bacteria lower soil salt? What a 2025 maize trial foundIn a 2025 greenhouse trial, maize given salt-tolerant bacteria survived triple the salt, and the soil salt reading fell by about half. What it means.
Hard, tired soil6 articles
Quick answer
Tired soil usually means low organic carbon, shown as "OC" on your soil test. It feeds the microbes that recycle nutrients and keep soil loose.
Living roots, crop residues and mature compost rebuild it. Tip: straw mixed in just before sowing can lock up nitrogen for a while.
- Importance of soil organic carbonDr Abhishek Mathur explains how soil organic carbon supports microbes, nutrient cycling, soil structure and practical soil health management.
- Soil carbon: the soul of the soilUnderstand soil organic carbon, calculate carbon per acre, and learn how soil sampling and laboratory tests measure soil carbon accurately.
- Rebuilding soil organic carbon: a shared responsibilityAmit Nalawade, Founder of NanoKheti, urges farmers, industry, scientists and policymakers to work together to rebuild soil organic carbon.
- Our kitchen is clean. The rest of India can adjust.NanoKheti founder Amit D. Nalawade on why kitchen waste does not vanish at the doorstep, and how homes and housing societies can compost it.
- Types of mycorrhiza and why they matter in farmingArbuscular vs ectomycorrhiza explained: how mycorrhizal fungi help crops get phosphorus, build soil carbon and resist root disease, and how to protect them.
- Mycorrhiza (VAM) for crops: protecting the spore on its way to the rootMycorrhiza (VAM) for crops helps roots reach phosphorus and water, but many spores die before reaching a root. How hydrogel beads could protect them.
Pests and crop diseases3 articles
Quick answer
Natural options are being researched: friendly fungi and bacteria, biochar and chitosan. In one pot trial, biochar with Trichoderma and Pseudomonas cut brinjal blight by two-thirds.
Use them alongside good pest management and registered products, not instead of them.
- Can biochar and friendly microbes protect brinjal from Phomopsis blight? What a 2026 trial foundIn a 2026 pot trial co-authored by Dr. Abhishek Mathur, biochar with Trichoderma and Pseudomonas cut brinjal Phomopsis blight by two-thirds and doubled yield.
- Can nano-silver made with Beauveria bassiana stop caterpillars? What a 2024 study foundNano-silver made with Beauveria bassiana cut caterpillars on cauliflower by up to 52% in a 2024 study co-authored by Dr. Abhishek Mathur. What it shows.
- Chitosan for crops: what a natural molecule from prawn shells can doChitosan, made from prawn and crab shells, can switch on a crop's own defences. What research shows, what a cotton trial found, and how to use it wisely.
Weak crop, heat or drought stress3 articles
Quick answer
Some natural inputs help crops cope with stress. Silicon strengthens cells against drought, salt and pests, most of all in rice, wheat, sugarcane and maize.
Chitosan works as a wake-up signal for the crop's own defences, and seaweed biostimulants support growth under stress.
- Silicon for crops: how a common mineral makes plants tougherHow silicon helps crops cope with drought, salt, disease and pests, and which crops gain most, from a review co-authored by Dr. Abhishek Mathur.
- Chitosan for crops: what a natural molecule from prawn shells can doChitosan, made from prawn and crab shells, can switch on a crop's own defences. What research shows, what a cotton trial found, and how to use it wisely.
- Can chitin from crustacean shells help seeds sprout? What a small 2013 test foundA small 2013 test co-authored by Dr. Abhishek Mathur soaked mung bean seeds in chitin and chitosan. What it found, why it is not proof, and how to test seed.
Pesticide residues in soil2 articles
Quick answer
Soil microbes can break down many pesticide residues into harmless products. This natural clean-up is called bioremediation.
It works best in living soil with organic matter, moisture and air. Heavy metals can only be locked up or moved, not destroyed.
- The soil's clean-up crew: how microbes break down pesticides and pollutantsSoil microbes can break down pesticide residues and lock up heavy metals. How bioremediation works, what it can and cannot do, and how to help your soil.
- Can soil bacteria break down monocrotophos? What a 2023 study foundMonocrotophos residues can linger in soil. A 2023 study co-authored by Dr. Abhishek Mathur found soil bacteria that break it down. What it showed, and its limits.
Fertiliser not giving results2 articles
Quick answer
Nutrients are lost through leaching, run-off and evaporation. Healthy soil biology, mycorrhiza and nutrient-efficiency products help more of each bag reach the root.
- Mycorrhiza (VAM) for crops: protecting the spore on its way to the rootMycorrhiza (VAM) for crops helps roots reach phosphorus and water, but many spores die before reaching a root. How hydrogel beads could protect them.
- Importance of soil organic carbonDr Abhishek Mathur explains how soil organic carbon supports microbes, nutrient cycling, soil structure and practical soil health management.
Kitchen waste and compost4 articles
Quick answer
Keep kitchen scraps separate and ask where they are actually treated. In a wet, unmanaged dump, food rots without air, can release methane and produces polluted liquid called leachate.
Waste less edible food, then compost the rest or send it to biogas. A housing society should run composting like its water supply: a working system, a responsible person and a budget.
- Give it back to the soil: a daily duty to nature and the nationDiscover how kitchen waste composting connects gratitude, soil health and service to India—and the impact when millions of households participate.
- Your kitchen is clean. The damage has only begun.Untreated kitchen waste can release methane, pollute water and burden communities. Learn why composting and community biogas matter in India.
- Our kitchen is clean. The rest of India can adjust.NanoKheti founder Amit D. Nalawade on why kitchen waste does not vanish at the doorstep, and how homes and housing societies can compost it.
- Four people. One kitchen. A ten-year environmental bill.A family of four in India discards about 2.2 tonnes of kitchen waste in ten years. Dumped, it could make 123 kg of methane. The calculation, step by step.
Our Technical Mentor
Dr. Abhishek Mathur
Board Advisor · Innovation & Patents
PhD Biochemistry (With specialization in Microbiology)
“Natural molecules are the future for tomorrow.”
An agricultural biotechnologist with over two decades in nano-formulations, bio-fertilizers and beneficial soil microbes. As NanoKheti's Board Advisor for Innovation & Patents, he mentors our team on the science behind our solutions and reviews our research articles.
For partners and researchers
Research & patents
Patent filings and core technologies
3 patent filings · nano-formulations · microbial consortia · controlled release
3 patent filings · nano-formulations · microbial consortia · controlled release
- A Composition for Microbial Degradation of Solid WasteMicrobial consortium that speeds up composting of municipal and organic waste into organic fertilizer.Filed · Dr. Abhishek Mathur
- Combo Products for Improving the Efficiency of Molasses for Alcohol RecoveryBiological formulation that boosts molasses fermentation and ethanol yield in distilleries.Filed · Dr. Abhishek Mathur
- Fungal-Based Biocidal Product for Enhancing Sucrose RecoveryEliminates Leuconostoc contamination in sugar production, improving sucrose recovery from cane juice.Filed · Dr. Abhishek Mathur
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