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Dr. Y. S. Parmar University of Horticulture & Forestry, Solan
Dr. Yashwant Singh Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Solan, was established on 1st December, 1985 with the objective to promote education, research and extension education in the fields of Horticulture, Forestry and allied disciplines. Late Dr. Yashwant Singh Parmar, the first Chief Minister and the architect of Himachal Pradesh perceived the importance of Horticulture and Forestry to develop and improve the State economy which led to the establishment of this University. Its history lies in erstwhile Himachal Agricultural College, Solan, established in 1962 and affiliated to the Panjab University. It became one of the campuses of Agriculture Complex of Himachal Pradesh University on its formation in 1970. Consequent upon the establishment of Himachal Pradesh Krishi Vishvavidyalaya in 1978, this campus became its Horticulture Complex and finally in 1985, assumed the status of a State University, being the only University in the country engaged exclusively in teaching, research and extension in Horticulture and Forestry.
The University is located at Nauni in Solan District of Himachal Pradesh, 13 km from Solan on Solan-Rajgarh Road, at an elevation of 1300 metres above mean sea level. Solan town is situated on national highway (NH-22) and is well connected by train and bus services.
The University has four constituent colleges, out of which, two are located at the main campus Nauni, one for horticulture and the other for forestry, having 9 and 7 departments, respectively. The third College i.e., College of Horticulture & Forestry is located at Neri in Hamirpur District on Nadaun-Hamirpur state highway, about 6 Km from Hamirpur town and is well connected with bus service. The college offers three Undergraduate Degree Programmes i.e. BSc (Hons.) Horticulture, BSc (Hons.) Forestry and B. Tech. Biotechnology and MSc degree programme in a few subjects. The fourth college i.e. College of Horticulture and Forestry, Thunag (Mandi) is located at Thunag District Mandi. This college offer BSc (Hons.) Horticulture and BSc (Hons.) Forestry degree programme. In addition, there are five Regional Research Stations, 12 Satellite Stations and five Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs) situated in different zones of the State.
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ThesisItem Open Access STUDIES ON SEED PELLETING AND SOWING DATES OF DIRECT SOWN ONION (Allium cepa L.)(UHF,NAUNI, 2019-09) PANWAR, ABHISHEK; THAKUR, ASHOK KABSTRACT The present investigations entitled ‘Studies on Seed Pelleting and Sowing Dates of Direct Sown Onion (Allium cepa L.)’ were carried out during rabi season of 2016-17and 2017-18 in the experimental farm and laboratory of Department of Seed Science and Technology, Dr. Y. S. Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Nauni, Solan, HP. The seeds of onion cv. Palam Lohit were pelleted with Acorus calamus leaf powder + clay, Vitex negendu leaf powder + clay, Melia azedarach leaf powder + clay, Albezia chinensis leaf powder + clay, Adhatoda vasica leaf powder + clay, Tegetus species leaf powder + clay, Artemesia roxburghiana leaf powder + clay, Lantana camara leaf powder + clay, Eucalyptus species leaf powder + clay, Azadirechta indica leaf powder + clay, Cinnamomum camphora leaf powder + clay, Cymbopogan flexuosus leaf powder + clay, clay and unpelleted seed were taken as control. The first experiment was conducted to study the effect of seed pelleting on seed quality during storage. The pelleted seeds were stored at ambient conditions for 9 months in the plastic boxes. The seed quality was tested at three months interval i.e. immediately after treatment (i.e. zero month), three months, six months and nine months storage. Highest germination (81.75%), seedling length (11.20 cm), seedling dry weight (1.82 g), seedling vigour index- I (920.33), seedling vigour index- II (148.90) and speed of germination (26.57) were observed in onion seeds pelleted with Azadirechta indica leaf powder + clay and Melia azedarach leaf powder + clay. Among the storage periods, fresh pelleted seed (0 month) showed maximum values with respect to germination (86.50%), seedling length (13.38 cm), seedling dry weight (2.02 g), seedling vigour index- length (1154.50), seedling vigour index- mass (173.52) and speed of germination (29.04) were highest in the fresh seeds (0 month) pelleted with the Azadirechta indica leaf powder + clay closely followed by Melia azedarach leaf powder + clay. Germination and vigour of seeds pelleted with Azadirechta indica leaf powder + clay and Melia azedarach leaf powder + clay decreased with increase in storage time, however, the rate of deterioration of pelleted seeds was lower than the unpelleted control. The second experiment was conducted in the field using the pelleted seeds for direct seeding and crop was evaluated for bulb crop parameters. The seeds pelleted with Azadirechta indica leaf powder + clayand Melia azedarach leaf powder + clay sown directly showed maximum values w.r.t. emergence (91.50 %), plant height at 60 days after sowing (35.35 cm), average leaf length (38.43cm), number of leaves per plant (8.67), number of days to harvesting (233.49). polar diameter (46.72 mm), equatorial diameter (57.77 mm), bulb size index (2699.74 ), neck thickness (12.12 mm), number of bulb per plot (89.00) average bulb weight (75.24 g), bulb yield (6.67 kg per plot or 400.01 q per ha), plant height before neck fall stage (58.55 cm). From the present studies, it can be concluded that onion seeds pelleted with Azadirechta indica leaf powder + clay and Melia azedarach leaf powder + clay showed significant effects for enhancing seed quality, growth, qualityand yield ofbulb crop raised through direct seeding.ThesisItem Open Access COMBINING ABILITY ANALYSIS OF FRUIT, SEED YIELD AND COMPONENT TRAITS IN SWEET PEPPER (Capsicum annuum L. var. grossum)(UHF,NAUNI, 2019-07) NALWA, CHERRY; KUMAR, MANISHABSTRACT The present study entitled “Combining ability analysis of fruit, seed yield and component traits in sweet pepper (Capsicum annuum L. var. grossum)” was carried out under greenhouse conditions at the Experimental Farm of the Department of Seed Science, Dr YS Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Nauni, Solan, Himachal Pradesh during the years 2017 and 2018. The experimental material for the present study comprised of six parents and their fifteen crosses which were developed by crossing these six diverse red sweet pepper lines in diallel design (excluding reciprocals). All the parents and their hybrids along with the standard check (Bomby) were planted in Randomized Block Design for their evaluation in kharif, 2018. The observations were recorded on eleven different traits, viz., days to first flowering, fruit set (%), number of fruits per plant, fruit weight (g), fruit yield (kg per plant), days to first ripe fruit harvesting, number of seeds per fruit, seed weight per fruit (g), seed yield per plant (g), thousand seed weight (g) and percent seed recovery. The analysis of variance indicated highly significant differences among the genotypes for all the traits studied. Experimental results revealed that two lines viz., RSPUHF-7 and RSPUHF-2 were found to be superior for earliness. Whereas, the parents RSPUHF-4 and RSPUHF-2 were superior on the basis of mean performance and general combining ability studies for fruit yield and seed component traits. Crosses RSPUHF-7 x RSPUHF-2 and RSPUHF-7 x RSPUHF-1 were found to be the best for earliness. Three cross combinations viz., RSPUHF-3 x RSPUHF-2, RSPUHF-4 x RSPUHF-2 and RSPUHF-5 x RSPUHF-2 were found to be the best on the basis of mean performance, heterosis studies and specific combining ability effects for fruit and seed yield traits. The parents showing earliness, better yield and component traits and seed yield traits can be released as open pollinated varieties for commercial cultivation. Similarly, the hybrids showing earliness, better yield and component traits and seed yield attributes along with per se performance can be adopted for commercial cultivation after their multilocation testing.ThesisItem Open Access STUDIES ON SEED BIOPRIMING AND ITS EFFECT ON GROWTH, YIELD AND SEED QUALITY IN FRENCH BEAN (Phaseolus vulgaris L.)(UHF,NAUNI, 2019-05) NEGI, SHIVANGI; BHARAT, NARENDER KABSTRACT The present investigation entitled “Studies on seed biopriming and its effect on growth, yield and seed quality in French bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.)” was conducted during the years 2017 and 2018 under laboratory and field conditions in the Department of Seed Science and Technology, Dr. YS Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Nauni, Solan (HP). Nine indigenous isolates of bioagents including three plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR-1, PGPR-2 & PGPR-3), three rhizobial biofertilizers (Rhizobium strain- B1, Rhizobium strain- B2& Rhizobium strain- P1) and three biocontrol agents (Trichoderma harzianum, T. viride & T. virens) were screened for their efficacy as seed biopriming under laboratory conditions following standard methods of seed quality and health testing as prescribed by International Seed Testing Association. On the basis of these tests, PGPR-1, Rhizobium strain- B1 and T. viride were selected from their respective categories for further studies. The doses (cfu/ ml) and time durations (hr) for seed biopriming with these three bioagents were also standardized following standard methods. On the basis of in vitro studies, the doses and time durations of biopriming finalized were as PGPR-1 @109 cfu/ml for 6 hrs, Rhizobium strain- B1 @109 cfu/ml for 8 hrs and T. viride @ 107 cfu/ ml for 6 hrs. These bioagents were then evaluated under storage and field conditions. Ten treatment combinations were used viz., PGPR-1 (T1), Rhizobium strain- B1(T2), Trichoderma viride (T3), PGPR + Rhizobium strain B1 (T4), PGPR + Trichoderma viride (T5), Rhizobium strain B1 + Trichoderma viride (T6), PGPR + Rhizobium strain B1 + Trichoderma viride (T7), Hydropriming (T8), Carbendazim (Treated control) (T9) and Untreated control (T10). Under storage conditions up to nine months, seed biopriming with PGPR-1 + Rhizobium strain B1 (T4) resulted significantly higher germination (91.50 %), speed of germination (6.86), seedling length (31.90 cm), seedling dry weight (1929.60 mg), seedling vigour index- length (SVI-L) (2929.95) and seedling vigour index- mass (SVI-M) (170131.40) and lowest seed mycoflora (3.75 %) as compared to carbendazim treatment and untreated control. Under field conditions in both the years, field emergence (95.18 %), plant height at 30 days after sowing (34.09 cm), plant height at final harvest (56.99 cm), days to pod harvest (52.33), harvest duration (18.67), pod length at final harvest (16.83 cm), number of pods per plant (20.17), dry pod weight (2.72 g), pod yield per plant (38.64 g), number of seeds per pod (7.17), seed yield per plant (20.76 g), seed yield per plot (875.33 g), seed yield per hectare (23.34 q), 100 seed weight (34.19 g), quality of harvested seeds were recorded significantly higher in PGPR-1 + Rhizobium strain B1 (T4) as compared to carbendazim seed treatment and untreated control. This treatment combination also reduced incidence of diseases like, Rhizoctonia root rot (2.60%) and Angular leaf spot (2.97%) significantly as compared to carbendazim seed treatments and untreated control. It can be concluded from the present investigation that seed biopriming of French bean cv. Contender with PGPR-1+Rhizobium strain B1 @ 109 cfu/ml for 8 hours was an effective treatment which significantly improved plant growth, pod yield, seed yield, seed quality and seed vigour and reduced disease incidence as compared to seed treatment with carbendazim @ 0.2% as well as untreated control under field conditions.ThesisItem Open Access STUDIES ON THE EFFECT OF SEED PELLETING AND INTEGRATED NUTRIENT MANAGEMENT IN BELL PEPPER (Capsicum annuum L.)(UHF, NAUNI, 2018-12) VERMA, ROHIT; MEHTA, D KABSTRACT The present investigation entitled “Studies on the Effect of Seed Pelleting and Integrated Nutrient Management in Bell Pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) was carried out in the laboratory and khaltoo experimental farm of Department of Seed Science and Technology, Dr YS Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Nauni, Solan HP during Kharif season for two consective years (2016-17 and 2017-18). The present research programme was carried out in two phases. In first experiment the seeds of bell pepper cv. Solan Bharpur were pelleted with NPK (19: 19: 19), Multiplex, Potassium dihydro orthophosphate (KH2PO4), Zinc sulphate (ZnSO4), Boric acid (H3BO3), Magnesium sulphate (MgSO4), Copper sulphate (CuSO4), NPK (19: 19: 19) + Multiplex, NPK (19: 19: 19) + KH2PO4 , NPK (19: 19: 19) + ZnSO4 , NPK (19: 19: 19) + (H3BO3), NPK (19: 19: 19) MgSO4, NPK (19: 19: 19) + CuSO4, Wood ash, Control (unpelleted seed). NPK and multiplex were used @ 5 gm/kg seed, all other micronutrients were used @ 300 mg/ kg of seed and wood ash was used @ 3000 g/kg of seed and tested for seed germination and vigour under laboratory and nursery conditions. It was found that seed pelleted with zinc sulphate produced best results for characters like germination, seedling length, seedling dry weight, seedling vigour index-L and seedling vigour index-M under laboratory and nursery conditions, whereas maximum speed of germination was recorded in unpelleted seeds under nursery conditions. Three best pelleting treatments i.e. Zinc sulphate, dihydro orthophosphate and Boric acid were shortlisted from experiment1 for further field studies. The second experiment was carried out under open field conditions in two sets seperately, set-1 for fresh market fruit crop and set-2 for seed crop. Three best pelleting treatments (as recorded in experiment-1) alongwith unpelleted control combined with six INM treatments i.e. recommended dose of NPK (100:75:75 kg/ha), Azotobacter (2.5 kg/ha) + PSB (2.5 kg/ha) + KSB (2.5 kg/ha), Azotobacter + PSB + KSB + 90% recommended dose of NPK, Azotobacter + PSB + KSB + 80 % recommended dose of NPK, Azotobacter + PSB + KSB + 70% recommended dose of NPK and Azotobacter + PSB + KSB + 60 % recommended dose of NPK. Biofertilizers were applied as seedling dip at transplanting and soil application. In the set- I (fresh market crop), seeds pelleted with zinc sulphate + application of Azotobacter + PSB + KSB + 80 % recommended dose of NPK produced maximum values for characters like plant height, harvesting duration, fruit weight, fruit length, fruit width, number of fruits/plant, fruit yield/plant, fruit yield/plot, fruit yield/ha, whereas, same treatment produced minimum values for days to 50 % flowering and days to fruit harvesting. In the set- II (seed crop), again the seed pelleted with zinc sulphate + application of Azotobacter + PSB + KSB + 80 % recommended dose of NPK produced maximum values for characters like ripe fruit weight, ripe fruit length, ripe fruit width, number of ripe fruits/plant, ripe fruit yield/plant, number of seed/fruit, seed yield /plant, seed yield/plot, seed yield/ha, 1000 seed weight, germination, seedling length, seedling dry weight, seed vigour index-Length, seed vigour index-Mass, whereas, same treatment produced minimum days to fruit harvesting. Seeds pelleted with potassium dihydro orthophosphate + application of Azotobacter (2.5 kg/ha) + PSB (2.5 kg/ha) + KSB (2.5 kg/ha) + 80 % recommended dose of NPK (P3N4) produced minimum ripe fruit rot incidence. Therefore, seed pelleting with zinc sulphate @ 300 mg/kg seed + application of Azotobacter + PSB + KSB as seedling dip at transplanting and soil application + 80 % recommended dose of NPK can be recommended for getting higher yield of fresh fruits as well as seed crop of bell pepper in Himachal Pradesh.ThesisItem Open Access STUDIES ON THE EFFECT OF PLANT GROWTH PROMOTING RHIZOBACTERIA AND BIOCONTROL AGENTS ON GROWTH, YIELD AND SEED PRODUCTION IN BELL PEPPER (Capsicum annuum L.)(UHF,NAUNI, 2018-07-05) SUJATA, KUMARI; BHARAT, NARENDER K.ABSTRACT The present investigations entitled “Studies on the effect of plant growth promoting rhizobacteria and biocontrol agents on growth, yield and seed production in bell pepper (Capsicum annuum L.)” was conducted during the years 2016 and 2017at the Research Farm and laboratory of Department of Seed Science and Technology, Dr YS Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Nauni, Solan (HP). Firstly, in vitro screening of three indigenous isolates each of plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR 1, PGPR 2 & PGPR 3) and biocontrol agents (Trichoderma viride, T. harzianum & T. hamatum) as seed treatment was done. Based on germination percentage, speed of germination, seedling vigour index – length (SVI-L) and seedling vigour index – mass (SVI-M), PGPR 3 and T. harzianum were selected from PGPRs and BCAs, respectively for further evaluation. Nine treatment combinations based on seed treatment (108cfu/ml of PGPR & 106cfu/g of Trichoderma) and soil application (talc formulation mixed with FYM @ 2%) of these two bio-agents were used viz., PGPR3 seed treatment (T1), T. harzianum seed treatment (T2), PGPR3 soil application (T3), Trichoderma soil application (T4), PGPR seed treatment + T. harzianum soil application (T5), PGPR3 soil application + T. harzianum seed treatment (T6), PGPR3 seed treatment + PGPR3 soil application (T7), T. harzianum seed treatment + T. harzianum soil application (T8) and Untreated control (T9). Under nursery conditions, maximum germination (86.20 %), maximum speed of germination (87.50), maximum seedling length (11.97cm), maximum seedling dry weight (4.45 mg), maximum seedling vigour index – length (SVI-L) (1011.16), maximum seedling vigour index – mass (SVI-M) (384.42), were recorded with PGPR seed treatment + T. harzianum soil application (T5) and minimum was recorded with untreated control. Under field conditions (fresh crop), maximum plant height (70.42 cm), number of fruits/plant (9.50), average fruit weight (44.01 g), fruit size (42.05 cm), harvest duration (56.67 days), number pickings (7.93), fresh fruit yield/ plant (922.33 g), fruit yield/plot (13.83 kg) and fruit yield/ha (403.17 q) were recorded with PGPR3 seed treatment + T. harzianum soil application (T5) and minimum was recorded in untreated control. In field experiment (seed crop), highestnumber of ripe fruits/plant (7.75), fruit weight (48.46 g), fruit size (44.37 cm), fruit yield/plot (15.58 kg), fruit yield/ha (450.37 q), number seeds/fruit (177.51), seed yield/plot (236.63 g), seed yield/ha (673.50 kg), 1000 seed weight (6.63 g), seed recovery (1.58%), quality of harvested seed were recorded with PGPR seed treatment + T. harzianum soil application (T5) and minimum was recorded in untreated control.This treatment combination also showed minimum incidence of major diseases viz. Cercospora leaf spot (5.10%), anthracnose (1.70%) and Phytophthora fruit rot (10.78 %) as compared to other treatments and control. It can be concluded from the present investigation that seed treatment with PGPR3 (108cfu/ml) for 4 hrs before sowing in nursery and soil application of talc formulation of Trichoderma harzianum (106cfu/gm) mixed with FYM @ 2% w/w in nursery and field enhanced plant growth, fresh fruit yield, seed yield and quality of harvested seed in bell pepper cv. Solan Bharpur. The treatment combination also reduced incidence of major diseases like anthracnose, Phytophthora fruit rot and Cercospora leaf spot under field conditions.ThesisItem Open Access STUDIES ON THE INTEGRATED USE OF NITROGEN AND POTASSIUM FERTIGATION WITH BORON SPRAY ON SEED YIELD AND QUALITY OF ONION (Allium cepa L.)(UHF,NAUNI, 2018-05) HIMANGINI; KANWAR, H.S.ABSTRACT The present investigation, “Studies on the integrated use of Nitrogen and Potassium fertigation with Boron spray on seed yield and quality of Onion (Allium cepa L.)” was carried out at the Pandah experimental farm and laboratory of the Department of Seed Science and Technology, Dr. Y. S. Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Nauni, Solan-173230 (H.P.) during two consecutive years (2014-15 and 2015-16). One experiment was laid in field in Randomized Block Design (Factorial) with 20 treatments and three replications. Disease free, healthy, uniform sized bulbs of about 60-65 g in weight were selected and were planted at a spacing of 45 x 30 cm in 60 plots of 1.5 m X 1.2 m. Three fertigation levels with 10 different combinations along with 0.1% Boron foliar spray were tried. Second experiment was laid out in laboratory in Completely Randomized Design (Factorial) with 20 treatments and four replications. The effect of NK treatment and Boron spray on plant and seed quality attributes and its effect on storage quality of seeds for 8 months were observed and recorded. Analysis of variance showed significant differences among the treatment combinations for all the characters studied. Non significant differences of available soil NPK, soil pH, organic carbon (%) and soil electrical conductivity. The fertigation treatment combination of N100K100 along with Boron (@ 0.01%) foliar spray before flowering performed well for all the plant and seed quality attributes. Therefore, can be recommended for commercial seed production of onion.ThesisItem Open Access STUDIES ON SEED PRODUCTION TECHNOLOGY OF ONION (Allium cepa L.) UNDER CHANGING CLIMATIC CONDITIONS IN MID HILLS OF HIMACHAL PRADESH(UHF,NAUNI, 2018-04) MANOHAR, LAL; KANWAR, H.S.ABSTRACT The present investigation entitled “Studies on seed production technology of onion (Allium cepa L.) under changing climatic conditions in mid hills of Himachal Pradesh” was carried out during Rabi season of 2014-15 and 2015-16 in the Experimental Research Farm and Laboratory of the Department of Seed Science and Technology, Dr YS Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Nauni, Solan, Himachal Pradesh using cv. ‘Palam Lohit’ under four experiments. The first experiment on ‘Effect of mulching and date of bulb transplanting on seed production of onion’ comprised of twenty treatment combination of mulching (black polythene mulch, silver-black polythene mulch, crop residues and no mulch) and dates of bulb transplanting (1st September, 15th September, 30th September, 15th October and 30th October) with spacing 45 × 45 cm. Second experiment on ‘Effect of mulching and planting geometry on seed production of onion’ comprised of sixteen treatment combinations of mulching (black polythene mulch, silver-black polythene mulch, crop residues and no mulch) and planting geometries [(45+45) × 45 cm, (60+30) × 45 cm, (45+45) × 30 cm and (60+30) × 30 cm]. Third experiment on ‘Effect of mulching and date of seedling transplanting in seedto- seed method of onion seed production’ which comprised of twenty treatment combination of mulching (black polythene mulch, silver-black polythene mulch, crop residues and no mulch) and dates of seedling transplanting (1st August, 15th August, 1st September, 15th September and 30th September) with spacing 45 × 45 cm. The experiments were laid in a Split Plot Design in field and Completely Randomized Design (Factorial) in laboratory which were replicated thrice. The observations were recorded on growth characters viz. plant height (cm), days to 50 per cent flowering, number of umbels per plant, number of umblets/umbel, umbel diameter (mm) and length of flowering stalk (cm); seed yield characters viz. number of seeds per umbel, number of seeds per plant, seed yield per plant (g), seed yield/plot (g) and seed yield/ha (kg); and seed quality attributed viz. 1000 seed weight (g), electrical conductivity of seeds (μSm-1), seed germination (%), speed of germination, seedling length (cm), seedling fresh weight (mg), seedling dry weight (mg), seedling vigour index-I and II. In the fourth experiment entitled ‘Impact of climate change on seed yield of onion’, data on various weather parameters (1985-2014) and onion seed productivity (1988-89 to 2013-14) was collected for linear regression and correlations analysis to study the trends of various weather parameters as well as their relationship with productivity. First experiment revealed that the treatment combination 15th October and black polythene mulch exhibited maximum values for almost all the growth characters, seed yield and seed quality attributes. The treatments have non-significant effect on electrical conductivity. Treatment combination 30th October and black polythene mulch was at par with best treatment combination for seed yield (per plant, per plot and per hectare). Second experiment revealed that treatment combination black polythene mulch and (45+45)×45 cm planting geometry was found superior for all the growth characters, seed yield attributes like number of seeds per umbel, number of seeds per plant and seed yield per plant; and seed quality attributes. On the other hand, onion bulbs planted in (45+45)×30 cm planting geometry on black polythene mulch resulted in higher seed yields (per plant, per plot and per hectare). Third experiment revealed that onion seedling transplanted on 1st September on black polythene mulch performed best for almost all the growth characters, seed yield attributes and seed quality characters. Lastly, the fourth experiment revealed that annual temperature showed an increasing trend in study area; whereas, the annual total rainfall as well as relative humidity showed a decreasing trend. The onion seed productivity over 26 years (1988-89 to 2013-14) showed a fluctuating pattern with an overall decreasing trend. Finally, in bulb to seed method 15th October date of bulb transplanting with (45+45)×30 cm planting geometry on the black polythene mulch; and in seed-to-seed method 1st September date of seedling transplanting on black polythene mulch may be recommended for commercial seed production of onion cv. ‘Palam Lohit’ after verification of results in the farmers field to neutralize the adverse effect of the climate change.ThesisItem Open Access INFLUENCE OF PLANTING DATES, MULCHES AND GA3 APPLICATIONS ON SEED YIELD AND QUALITY OF AFRICAN MARIGOLD (Tagetes erecta L.) CV. ‘PUSA NARANGI GAINDA’(UHF,NAUNI, 2018-03) THAKUR, PRIYANKA; DILTA, B.S.ABSTRACT The present investigation entitled, “Influence of planting dates, mulches and GA3 applications on seed yield and quality of African marigold (Tagetes erecta L.) cv. Pusa Narangi Gainda” was carried out at the Khaltoo experimental farm of Department of Seed Science & Technology, Dr Yashwant Singh Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Nauni, Solan (HP) during 2015 to 2017. The experiment was laid out in Split- Plot Design with 48 treatment combinations of three planting dates (viz., 1st July , 16th July and 1st August), four levels of mulching ( no mulch, crop residue mulch, black plastic mulch and silver-black plastic mulch) and four doses of GA3 (0, 50,100 and 150 ppm ) replicated thrice. Planting of seedlings was done at three different planting dates along with application of different mulches and the treatments of GA3 were applied after 45 days of transplanting as foliar spray. The data were recorded on various growth, flowering, seed yield and quality attributes and subjected to analysis of variance. The results obtained indicated that transplanting of seedlings in the 1st week of July (1st July), mulching of plants with silver-black sheet (M4) and spraying of plants with the highest concentration of GA3 (i.e. 150 ppm) alone as well as in combinations exhibited best performance in terms of minimum days taken to first flowering (days) and attaining maximum values w.r.t. plant height (cm), number of flowers per plant, size of flowers (cm), shoot fresh weight (g), shoot dry weight (g), root fresh weight (mg), root dry weight (mg), number of seeds per head, seed yield per plant (g), seed yield per plot (g), 1000 seed weight (g), germination percentage (%), seedling length (cm) and dry weight (mg), seed vigour index-I (Length) and seed vigour index-II (Mass) as well as lowest electrical conductivity of seeds (dS/m) in comparison to all other treatments. Therefore, transplanting of seedlings be commenced on in 1st week of July (1st July) and mulched with silver- black plastic sheet (M4) along with spraying of GA3 @ 150 ppm after 45 days of transplanting can be recommended for commercial seed production of marigold under mid hill conditions of Himachal Pradesh.ThesisItem Open Access STUDIES ON CHARACTERIZATION AND EVALUATION OF FRENCH BEAN (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) GERMPLASM OF HIMACHAL PRADESH(UHF,NAUNI, 2017) KANWAR, RAJESH; MEHTA, D.K.ABSTRACT Knowledge of genetic diversity is important for selection of parents in the crop improvement programmes and to develop a sustainable conservation strategy. The present investigation entitled “Studies on characterization and evaluation of French bean (Phaseolus vulgaris l.) germplasm of Himachal Pradesh” was conducted in the years 2014, 2015 and 2016 to decipher the French bean diversity of Himachal Pradesh through varietal characterization and also aimed to evaluate the performance of different French bean genotypes for seed yield and other agronomical attributes. In total 26 geographically diverse French bean genotypes collected from different agro-climatic zones of Himachal Pradesh and two check varieties viz., Baspa and Jawala were utilized in the study. The genotypes were subjected to preliminary seed morphometric characterization in the Laboratory and field evaluation in the Experimental farm using qualitative and quantitative traits. Analysis of seed morphometric traits revealed ample amount of variability with respect to seed coat colour, seed shape, 100 seed weight, seed length and seed width. The field experiment was laid out in Randomized Complete Block Design with three replications for studying the extent of variability and performance of each genotype. Observations were recorded on eleven qualitative and fifteen quantitative traits. Amongst the qualitative traits, French bean genotypes observed variability w.r.t. plant growth habit, stem pigmentation, hairiness on the stem, flower colour, pod colour at immature stage and pod shape. Analysis of variance for quantitative traits showed significant differences among all the genotypes for all the characters studied. The genotypes RL-19 and RL-20 gave higher seed yield and performed better for many of the horticultural traits over all the checks. The genotypic variance was low to high for different traits studied, which resulted in low to high heritability and genetic gain values. High heritability coupled with high genetic gain was observed for plant height at final harvest, number of branches per plant, number of pods per plant, 100 seed weight and seed yield /plant which suggests their improvement through simple selection method. Correlation analysis revealed that all the traits except pod width had significant positive correlation with seed yield per plant at both phenotypic and genotypic level. Further, path coefficient analysis indicated that pod length had the highest positive direct effect on seed yield/plant followed by number of seeds per pod, number of pods per plant, days to 50% flowering, number of branches per plant, leaflet width, harvest duration, plant height at final harvest and 100 seed weight. Therefore, main emphasis should be given on these characters, while making selection in French bean genotypes. D2 Mahalanobis analysis divided the genotypes into three clusters and revealed that the cluster I and II were most divergent and there will be more chances of getting better segregants in F2 and subsequent generations from the crossing of genotypes from cluster I and II. Thus, hybridization between the genotypes of these groups can be very effective for further improvement in French bean. Moreover, 15 RAPD primers were used for deducing the diversity at DNA level. The French bean genotypes produced 79 PCR fragments, of which 59 were polymorphic with an average of 3.93 polymorphic bands per primer. The level of polymorphism with different primers ranged between 42.86-100%. The average Jaccard similarity index among genotypes ranged from 0.48 to 0.98, thereby showing sufficient genetic variability. Dendrogram generated via RAPD information separated majority of the genotypes in two sub clusters (Ia and Ib) sharing approximately 68% similarity between each other. Further, genotype RL-21 followed by RL- 18, RL-17 and RL-22 came as an outliner falling individually in distinct indexing pattern. Geographical affiliations and morphological associations were observed while studying the genotypic patterns within each group i.e. A, B, C and D, thereby conforming the usefulness of PCR based approach in diversity assessment. Thus, the present study indicated that the collected landraces had sufficient variability both at morphological and molecular level. Such variability is desirable in breeding programs.