Varietal Evaluation of Asiatic Carrot for Yield, Yield Contributing Characters and Economics

Abstract

Carrot (Daucus carota L.) is cool season crop and grown for its edible roots which are nutritionally rich in beta carotene, anthocyanins and minerals. It is used as salad, cooked vegetable and in juices. Per capita per day consumption of vegetables in India in general is quite low which is one of the major reasons behind malnutrition and vitamin-mineral deficiencies. District Mohali of Punjab falls under sub-mountainous zone where many farmers grow vegetables during rabi season and fetch remunerative returns. However it was observed that availability of high yielding carrot varieties along with high consumer preference is lacking. Hence, the present investigation was planned and carried out to find the suitable carrot variety for high root yield, better quality and good returns in Mohali district of Punjab. The present investigation was carried out in five farmer's field during rabi 2019-20 to evaluate three genotypes of carrot for root yield and contributing characters. From the results of the On Farm Trial conducted, it was revealed that T 1 (Farmer's practice) gave root yield of 400 Q/ha whereas T 2 (Punjab Black Beauty) gave 450 Q/ha and T 3 (PC-161) gave 575 Q/ha. Thus PC-161 yielded maximum i.e 575(Q/ha) along with the maximum B: C ratio (3.87:1) as compared to Punjab Black Beauty i.e 3.05:1 and farmers practice with B: C ratio of 2.78:1.