The Integrated Approach for Organic and Inorganic Sources of Nutrients to Enhance Performance of Cauliflower (Brassica oleracea var. botrytis L.) under Sub-Humid Climatic Conditions

Abstract

To overcome the limitations of soil fertility and provide high crop output, soil fertility management, including the sensible use of mixes of organic and inorganic fertilizers, is a realistic approach. The strategy of integrated nutrient usage was used since there was a decrease in soil characteristics and crop productivity as a result of the overuse of chemical fertilizers. The present study was designed in 2019–2020 and 2020–2021 at the high-tech unit, Department of Horticulture, Udaipur to investigate the integrated use of FYM and inorganic fertilizers along with silicon on the development and output parameters of cauliflower (Brassica oleracea var. botrytis L.). The field experiment was carried out with fourteen treatments as a soil application under randomized block design. The results revealed that treatment T14 (50% recommended dose of nitrogen by FYM + 50% recommended dose of fertilizers + 100 kg Silicon/ha) showed maximum plant height at harvest (65.73 cm), number of leaves per plant (24.27), leaf area index (11.83), chlorophyll content at 50 days after transplanting (1.99 mg/g), stalk length (8.23 cm) and stem girth (7.41 cm), minimum number of days to curd initiation after transplanting (66.37), minimum number of days required for marketable curd maturity after transplanting (89.17), maximum plant weight (1154.74 g), diameter of curd (15.75 cm), curd yield (277.53 q/ha) and dry weight of curd (91.41 g) as compared to control. In the end, the results showed that the growth and yield of cauliflower were better when silicon, manure, and chemical fertilizers were used together.