COMPARING UPTAKE EFFICIENCY OF CONVENTIONAL AND NANO ZINC FERTILIZERS UNDER DIFFERENT METHODS OF APPLICATION IN BRINJAL (Solanum melongena L.)
Loading...
Date
2019-09
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
University of Horticultural Sciences, Bagalkot
Abstract
Zinc is an important plant micronutrient and its management is crucial especially in alkaline soils. In alkaline and calcareous soils, applied zinc gets converted to calcium zincate and zinc carbonate and thus, requires high application rates. Therefore, an efficient mechanism to reduce the amount of zinc fertilizer application to the soil or foliar without compromising the plant growth, yield and environmental pollution is very essential. In recent years the application of zinc in nano fertilizer form is being tested and evaluated for different crops. Considering this, the present investigation on comparing uptake efficiency of conventional and nano zinc fertilizers under different methods of application in brinjal (Solanum melongena L.) was carried out at Udyangiri, UHS, Bagalkot main campus during 2018-19 with 8 treatments and 3 replications under RBD design.
Brinjal crop responded to all the zinc treatments as initial soil zinc content itself was very low. Soil application as well as foliar application of nano zinc sulphate and zinc oxide recorded better results in terms of growth and yield of brinjal. The number of leaves, number of primary branches and secondary branches, plant height, plant canopy area, SPAD meter reading, LAI and biomass were significantly higher in zinc treated plants compared to control. Among zinc fertilizer treatments, soil application of nano zinc sulphate @ 200 g/ha, soil application of nano zinc sulphate @ 100 g/ha + 0.5 per cent foliar spray and soil application of conventional zinc sulphate recorded higher growth and yield parameters as compared to other treatments.
Application of nano zinc fertilizers did not increase soil zinc content to excess level compared to conventional zinc sulphate but maintained close to critical level. Leaf zinc status was significantly higher in conventional zinc sulphate treated plants compared to nano zinc fertilizer treated plants. Total plant zinc uptake in nano zinc fertilizer treatment was on par with conventional zinc sulphate fertilizer. Zinc use efficiency indices like crop recovery efficiency and zinc uptake efficiency were significantly higher for nano zinc fertilizers compared to conventional zinc sulphate which might have resulted in better growth and higher yield.
Gross returns, net returns and B:C ratio were found significantly higher with soil application (1:4.68) as well as soil + foliar application of nano zinc sulphate (1:4.48) than other zinc sources and method of application and control treatment. Application of nano zinc fertilizer to soil @ 200 g/ha or soil application of nano zinc sulphate @ 100 g/ha + 0.5 per cent foliar spray were found better for the good growth, high yield and high economic return from brinjal with better zinc use efficiency and less environmental pollution.