Effect of Intra Row Spacing and Nitrogen Fertilizer Levels on Yield of Shallot in Mulo District, Ethiopia

Abstract

The shallot is one of the important alliaceous crops cultivated in many tropical countries. It is an important horticultural crop used to flavor the local stew "wot" and a source of income for farmers in Ethiopia. However, the productivity of shallot is low at study area due to various limiting factors such as low soil fertility, plant population and lack of improved agronomic practices. A field experiment was conducted to investigate the effect of intra-row spacing and nitrogen fertilizer levels on growth, yield and quality of shallot at Mulo District, Oromia Regional state, Ethiopia during 2021/22 off season. The treatments consisted of four intra-row spacing (5, 10, 15 and 20) cm and four levels of nitrogen fertilizer (0, 50, 100 and 150) kgNha<sup>-1</sup> tested in a randomized complete block design with three replications. Data on shallot yield was collected. The interaction effect of intra-row spacing and nitrogen fertilizer influenced the marketable yield, unmarketable yield, bulb weight, bulb fresh weight, bulb dry weight, dry matter and total yield. As a result, the treatment combination of 150kgha<sup>-1</sup> nitrogen and 15cm intra-row spacing yielded the highest net benefit of shallot (Eth-Birr 1,012,274), followed by the treatment combination of 150kgha<sup>-1</sup> nitrogen and 20 cm intra-row spacing. In conclusion, the above findings indicated that the combined application of 150kgNha<sup>-1 </sup>with 15 cm spacing can improve shallot growth and productivity in the Mulo district area. However, more research needs to be done in different seasons and locations, taking into account the application rate of nitrogen fertilizer and different intra-row spacing, to generate more reliable information.