In the coastal zone of the Ganges Delta, water shortages due to soil salinity limit the yield of dry season crops. To alleviate water shortage as a consequence of salinity stress in the coastal saline ecosystem, the effect of different water-saving (WS) and water-conserving options was assessed on growth, yield and water use of tomato; two field experiments were carried out at Gosaba, West Bengal, India in consecutive seasons during the winter of 2016–17 and 2017–18. The experiment was laid out in a randomized block design with five treatments viz., surface irrigation, surface irrigation + straw mulching, drip irrigation at 100% reference evapotranspiration (ET0), drip irrigation at 80% ET0, drip irrigation at 80% ET0 + straw mulching. Application of drip irrigation at 80% ET0 + straw mulching brought about significantly the highest fruit as well as the marketable yield of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.). The soil reaction (pH), post-harvest organic carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium (N, P and K) status and soil microbial population along with the biochemical quality parameters of tomato (juice pH, ascorbic acid, total soluble solids and sugar content of fruits) were significantly influenced by combined application of drip irrigation and straw mulching. Surface irrigation significantly increased the salinity level in surface and sub-surface soil layers while the least salinity development was observed in surface mulched plots receiving irrigation water through drip irrigation. The highest water productivity was also improved from drip irrigation at 80% ET0 + straw mulched plots irrespective of the year of experimentation. Such intervention also helped in reducing salinity stress for the tomato crop. Thus, straw mulching along with drip irrigation at 80% ET0 can be recommended as the most suitable irrigation option for tomato crop in the study area as well as coastal saline regions of South Asia. Finally, it can be concluded that the judicious application of irrigation water not only increased growth, yield and quality tomatoes but also minimized the negative impact of soil salinity on tomatoes grown in the coastal saline ecosystem of Ganges Delta.
Ber (Zizyphus mauritiana Lamk.) is an indigenous delicious, nourishing fruit grown widely throughout the India but faces heavy fruit drop due to several biotic and abiotic stress factors resulted in declining trend of ber production over the year. Keeping these facts in foreground, replicated field experiment was conducted during 2013-14 and 2014-15 at HRS, Mondouri, BCKV, West Bengal with eleven treatments consist two different levels of NAA, GA 3 , 2,4-D, ZnSO 4 and H 3 BO 3 along with a control (water spray). Results of investigation revealed that application of 2,4-D @ 10 mg/l recorded highest fruit set (48.80%). Maximum fruit retention (42.83%) and total no. of fruits/tree (514) were obtained with the application of NAA @ 20 mg/l. Application of GA 3 @ 20 mg/l recorded significantly (p≤0.05) higher yield (30.67 kg/tree), fruit weight (60.5 g), fruit length (5.8 cm), fruit breadth (5.1 cm), pulp to seed ratio (13.9) and specific gravity (1.104) as well as economic returns over control during both the year of experiment. Among the treatments H 3 BO 3 at 0.4% recorded the highest TSS (11.7°Brix), total sugar (8.33%), reducing sugar (5.21%) and TSS: Acid (107.36) ratio with lowest fruit acidity (0.10 %) whereas highest vitamin-C content of fruit was recorded with GA 3 at 20 mg/l (64.68 mg / 100 g) followed by NAA at 20 mg/l. Results suggest that twice spraying of GA 3 @ 20 mg/l and H 3 BO 3 at 0.4% is vital for optimizing yield components, yield and quality of ber (cv. BAU Kul-1) in trans-Gangetic plains of West Bengal.
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Interpretation :The study aimed to investigate the effect of soil and foliar boron fertilization on the growth, productivity and quality well as benefit in processing grade potato (Kufri Chipsona-3) in alluvial soil at West Bengal, India.A field experiment was carried out on alluvial soil at West Bengal during the winter season of 2014-15 and 2015-16. The experiment comprised of five treatments [T , Recommended dose of fertilizer (RDF) of NPK; T , RDF of NPK + 2.0 kg soil applied B/ha; T , RDF of NPK + 0.1% boric acid spray at 40 days after planting (DAP); T , RDF of NPK + 0.1% boric acid spray at 40 and 60 DAP; and T , RDF of NPK + 0.1% boric acid spray at 40, 50 and 60 DAP] arranged in a completely randomized block design replicated four times. Plant growth, yield, nutrient concentration and quality parameters of potato tuber (specific gravity, total soluble solids, tuber hardness, total acidity, Vitamin C and protein) were analyzed in the experiment.Experimental findings showed that RDF of NPK + 0.1% boric acid spray (thrice) produced significantly higher number (3.70 × 10 ha ) and yield (33.49 t ha ) of processing grade tuber than other boron levels (foliar and soil) tested. Application of RDF of NPK + 0.1% boric acid spray (thrice) exhibited its superiority by producing tubers with significantly higher specific gravity, total soluble solids, tuber hardness, total acidity, Vitamin C, protein and starch content with lowest phenol content and lighter chip colour.
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