Evaluation of Organic Nutrient Management Practices on Growth Yield and Quality of Onion Allium cepa L

Abstract

newline The present investigation entitled Evaluation of organic nutrient management newlinepractices on growth, yield and quality of onion (Allium cepa L.) was carried out at newlineSericulture Farm, Department of Horticulture, Rajasthan College of Agriculture, newlineMPUAT-Udaipur during the Rabi season in two consecutive years 2020-2021 and 2021- newline2022. The twelve different treatment combinations included FYM, neem cake, liquid newlineorganic manures, PROM, gypsum and natural farming practices were evaluated on onion newlinecrop with three replications under randomized block design. The results revealed that newlineamong the organic nutrient management practices, application of T7 treatment (50 per newlinecent of RDN through FYM + 50 per cent of RDN through Neem cake + Panchagavya newlinespray at 3 per cent + Vermiwash spray at 5 per cent at 30, 50 and 70 DAT + Jeevamrut at newline500 l ha-1 six times at 20 days intervals) was recorded significantly highest plant height newlineat 60 and 90 DAT (53.26 and 60.99 cm respectively), number of leaves per plant at newlineharvest (9.13), fresh weight of leaves per plant at harvest (25.11 g), neck diameter (0.91 newlinecm), bulb diameter (5.62 cm equatorial and 4.86 cm polar), average bulb weight (69.06 newlineg), average bulb yield per plot (4.42 kg) and bulb yield per hectare (36.83 tonnes), TSS newline(16.90%) and dry matter content (15.81%), soil organic carbon (0.68%), available NPK newline(kg ha-1), NPK uptake (kg ha-1) and microbial count (cfu g-1) while the highest pungency newline(6.49 µmol pyruvic acid per g fresh weight) was observed in treatment T11 (FYM at 5 t newlineha-1 + PROM at 1t ha-1 + Gypsum at 2 t ha-1 + Jeevamrut at 500 l ha-1 six times at 20 newlinedays intervals). newlineAccording to the results pertaining to maximum net return (446500 Rs/ha) was newlinerecorded under T4 - 50 per cent of RDN through FYM + 50 per cent of RDN through newlineNeem cake + Jeevamrut at 500 L ha-1 six times at 20 days intervals and highest B:C ratio newline(5.40) was observed under T12 [Natural farming practices: Beejamrutha + Ghan newlineJeevamrut at 200 kg ha-1 + Jeevamrut at 500 l ha-1 six times at 20 da