STUDIES ON PLANT GEOMETRY AND INTEGRATED NUTRIENT MANAGEMENT ON GROWTH, YIELD AND QUALITY TRAITS OF GUAVA (Psidium guajava L.) var. LALIT
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Date
2017-05
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University of Horticultural Sciences, Bagalkot. (College of Horticulture, Bengaluru)
Abstract
The effect of plant geometry and integrated nutrient management (INM) on growth, yield and quality of guava (Psidium guajava L.) var. Lalit was evaluated, among four different plant densities viz., 2×2, 3×3, 6×3 and 6×6 m, the maximum plant height (2.81 and 3.07m), canopy volume (11.76 and 12.84m3), fruit weight (87.13 and 84.91g), TSS (15.14 and 15.10 °Brix), ascorbic acid (169.24 and 176.94 mg100-1g pulp) and minimum acidity (0.44 and 0.43%) was observed in 6×6m spacing during 2013 and 2014, respectively. However, maximum fruit yield per hectare (16.74 and 14.33 tons), shelf life of fruits (6.83 and 6.89 days) and soil available nitrogen (212.30 and 207.23 kgha-1), phosphorus (24.56 and 25.71 kgha-1) and potassium (260.32 and 273.34 kgha-1) were observed in 2×2 m spacing. The biofertilizers and organic manures were applied 15 days before the application of the inorganic nutrients in plant basins after pruning. The INM of Azotobacter 20g + PSB 20g + vermicompost 10 kg + 50 % recommended NPK resulted in highest plant height (2.81 and 2.90 m), canopy volume (11.71 and 11.03 m3), fruit weight (95.23 and 93.61g), fruit yield per hectare (15.08 and 12.91 tons), TSS (15.77 and 15.81 °Brix), ascorbic acid (184.52 and 192.92 mg100-1 g pulp), maximum shelf life of fruits (7.17 and 7.24 days), soil available nitrogen (221.10 and 216.22 kgha-1), phosphorus (26.76 and 28.01 kgha-1) and potassium (296.89 and 311.73 kgha-1), while the acidity was minimum (0.34 and 0.33 %) during 2013-14, respectively. The highest B:C ratio was observed in Azotobacter 20g + PSB 20g + FYM 10kg + 50 % recommended NPK at the spacing of 6×3 m (2.06 and 4.43) in 2013 and 2014, respectively. Guava plants spaced at 6×3 m with the application of Azotobacter 20g + PSB 20g + vermicompost 10kg + 50 % recommended NPK proved to be the best combination for guava cultivation.