Response of Growth Characteristics and Yield of Broccoli Hybrids to Foliar Spraying with Copper Nanoparticles

Abstract

Abstract The field experiment was conducted during the agricultural season 2021-2022 at the research station of the Department of Horticulture and Landscaping, College of Agriculture, University of Diyala to study the effect of foliar feeding with nano and chelated copper for five broccoli hybrids. The study included two factors; The first factor is five broccoli hybrids: Jassmine (V1), 2004 (V2), Zen (V3), Matsuri (V4) and Danar (V5). The second factor has four application treatments of spraying copper: these are, zero concentration, which is spraying with distilled water only (F0), the second is chelated copper 40 mg L-1 (F2), the third is nano-copper 10 mg L-1 (F3) and the fourth is nano-copper 20 mg L-1. The experiment was performed at a split plot system and according to a randomized complete block design (RCBD). The data were collected and analysed statistically using the statistical program (SAS) and the averages were compared with Duncan’s polynomial test at the 0.05 probability level. The number of leaves, the percentage of dry matter in the leaves, the plant yield per square meter, the early appearance of the curd, the percentage of total soluble solids in the curd, and the concentration of vitamin C in the broccoli were examined. The results of the experiment showed the superiority of the Danar hybrid in the number of leaves, while the Zen hybrid was superior in the diameter of the stem and the 2004 hybrid was distinguished in the percentage of dry matter in the leaves, the early appearance of the curd, the highest yield per square meter, the best total soluble solids ratio, and the highest concentration of vitamin C in the curd. The results also showed that foliar spraying with nano-copper had a positive effect on most vegetative growth characteristics and yield, as the spraying with a concentration of 20 mg L-1 of nano-copper outperformed the percentage of dry matter in the leaves as for the number of leaves and stem diameter, the highest values were recorded in the plant yield per square meter, in the percentage of total soluble solids, and the concentration of vitamin C in the crop.