*2.2. Experimental Details*

The field experiment was planned in split-plot design with six crop establishment methods (CEMs) with three for each rice (*Pusa Sugandh 5*) and wheat (*HD 2967*) as main plot (net area for each main plot was 256.5 m2). The CEMs were arranged as puddled transplanted rice (PTR) followed by (*fb*) conventional drill-sown wheat (CDW), system of rice intensification (SRI) *fb* system of wheat intensification (SWI) and aerobic rice system (ARS) *fb* zero-tillage wheat (ZTW). In all these CEMs, nine subplot treatments were applied (net area for each sub-plot was 9.5 m2), which include RDN (recommended dose of nutrients) (120 kg ha−<sup>1</sup> N and 25. 8 kg ha−<sup>1</sup> P), 75% RDN, 75% RDN + *Anabaena* sp. (CR1) + *Providencia* sp. (PR3) consortia (MC1) and 75% RDN + *Anabaena-Pseudomonas* biofilmed formulations (MC2). These four treatments were applied with and without Zn (soil applied 5 kg Zn ha−<sup>1</sup> through zinc sulphate heptahydrate) making total eight treatments and one control (no fertilizer). All treatments were replicated thrice.
