Growth and Yield response of chili Varieties to Foliar Spray of Zinc and Boron

Abstract

In 2014, a field tests were supervised at the Horticulture Orchard, Department of Horticulture, Sindh Agriculture University, to assess the impact of foliar applications of zinc (Zn) and boron (B) at various concentrations, in addition to the recommended NPK fertilizers, on three chili varieties: Nagina, Sanam, and Longi. The experiment followed a three-replicated Randomized Complete Block Design.

The findings indicated that the performance of chili crops was considerably influenced (P<0.05) by the foliar application of Zn and B fertilizers at different concentrations alongside NPK fertilizers. The treatment combining foliar Zn and B at 0.2% concentration with NPK fertilizers showed superior results, with plants reaching a height of 68.00 cm, flowering in 64.67 days, spreading to 64.33 cm, producing 15.33 branches per plant, 474.00 fruits per plant, with an average fruit length of 6.26 cm, fruit weight of 706.33 g per plant, and yielding 4243.90 kg/ha of fresh chili. The application of foliar boron alone at 0.2% concentration with NPK fertilizers ranked second, while foliar zinc alone at 0.2% concentration with NPK fertilizers ranked third in fruit yield performance. The control group (NPK without Zn and B) yielded the lowest results.Among the varieties, Sanam exhibited superior traits compared to the others, with a plant height of 63.75 cm, flowering in 63.50 days, spreading to 65.08 cm, producing 15.67 branches per plant, 485.67 fruits per plant, with an average fruit length of 7.21 cm, fruit weight of 736.33 g per plant, and yielding 4418.00 kg/ha of fresh chili. Nagina and Longi ranked second and third, respectively.The application of foliar zinc and boron at 0.2% concentration alongside the recommended NPK fertilizers led to early flowering, improved fruiting, and higher yields compared to crops without foliar zinc and boron. Additionally, the Sanam variety demonstrated superior fruit yields compared to Nagina and Longi. Therefore, for a profitable chili harvest, cultivating the Sanam variety alongside foliar applications of zinc and boron at 0.2% concentration, in addition to the recommended NPK fertilizers, is recommended.