Abstract This study was aimed to investigate the effect of bio-organic phosphate either alone or in combination with phosphorus solubilizing bacteria strain (Bacillus MWT-14) on the growth and productivity of two wheat cultivars (Galaxy-2013 and Punjab-2011) along with recommended (150–100 NP kg ha−1) and half dose (75–50 NP kg ha−1) of fertilizers. The combined application of bio-organic phosphate and the phosphorous solubilizing bacteria strain at either fertilizer level significantly improved the growth, yield parameters and productivity of both wheat cultivars compared to non-inoculated control treatments. The cultivar Punjab-2011 produced the higher chlorophyll contents, crop growth rate, and the straw yield at half dose of NP fertilizer; while Galaxy-2013, with the combined application of bio-organic phosphate and phosphorous solubilizing bacteria under recommended NP fertilizer dose. Combined over both NP fertilizer levels, the combined use of bio-organic phosphate and phosphorous solubilizing bacteria enhanced the grain yield of cultivar Galaxy-2013 by 54.3% and that of cultivar Punjab-2011 by 83.3%. The combined application of bio-organic phosphate and phosphorous solubilizing bacteria also increased the population of phosphorous solubilizing bacteria, the soil organic matter and phosphorous contents in the soil. In conclusion, the combined application of bio-organic phosphate and phosphorous solubilizing bacteria offers an eco-friendly option to harvest the better wheat yield with low fertilizer input under arid climate.

Abstract The present manuscript describes effects of mixed convection on MHD flow of a second grade fluid above a vertical plate. The fluid impinges orthogonally on the plate which is lubricated by a slim coating of power-law fluid. A system of ordinary differential equations is obtained by employing the similarity transformations to the original partial differential equations. To handle the present flow situation, it is assumed that velocity and shear stress of the second grade fluid and the lubricant are continuous at the interface. A well reputed numerical technique called Keller-box method is utilized to solve coupled non-linear equations. Influence of slip, magnetic and mixed convection parameters, Weissenberg and Prandtl numbers on the velocity, skin friction coefficient, temperature and heat transfer rate at the surface is presented in the form of graphs and tabular data for both assisting and opposing flows. The results in the case of no-slip condition are compared with the available numerical data. A good agreement of these results certifies our effort.