1 EFFECT OF NITROGEN AND PHOSPHOROUS ON THE BIOMASS PRODUCTION OF PHYLLANTHUS AMARUS AT NURSERY STAGE Anita Tomar, Rashmi Chamoli and V.R.R Singh Silviculture Division, Forest Research Institute, Dehradun (India) Introduction Phyllanthus amarus, an important medicinal plant, commonly known as Bhumyamalaki, belongs to family Euphorbiaceae. It is an annual herb widely distributed in tropical and sub-tropical region of the world. The plant has been used in the treatment of variety of diseases like jaundice, kidney and urinary bladder problems, diabetes and dreaded hepatitis ‘B’. The tree growth depends upon the availability and maintenance of nitrogen pool and its efficient use. Nitrogen is generally known as an important element for the plant growth because of its role in the metabolism of various vital substances viz. proteins, amino acids, nucleic acids, vitamins and other growth regulating substance. Nitrogen and phosphorus are the two major plant nutrients and their combined effect is more beneficial for the plants than either of the two alone. Their probiotic influence has been thoroughly reviewed by Abbott and Robson (1982) in agricultural crops. In general, Nitrogen fertilizer applied alone or with phosphorous in the poor soil increased plant height, shoot dry matter and nitrogen content as compared to the soil which received no fertilizer (Robson, 1982). Cobbina et al., (1992) reported that the application of phosphorus fertilizer ensured sufficient plant growth. Majority of the present day herbal industry depends on wild strata and collection by unscientific manner. So it is time to bring these medicinal plants under plough to meet the demand of the herbal based product. This paper reports the efforts made to enhance the growth of this plant by addition of chemical fertilizers at nursery stage. Material and Methods Mature seeds of Phyllanthus amarus were sown on the bed in April and proper care was taken to obtain healthy seedling. Thirty five days old seedlings approximately