Comparison of sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) cultivars for productivity and nitrogen-use efficiency under different fertilizer levels in rainfed condition

Abstract

Response of 9 sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] cultivars, viz. 4 hybrids (‘SPH 1820’, ‘SPH 1849’, ‘CSH 25’, ‘CSH 30’) and 5 improved varieties (‘SPV 2433’, ‘SPV 2437’, ‘SPV 2438’, ‘CSV 27’ and ‘CSV 31’), to 3 fertility levels [75, 100 and 125 % recommended dose of fertilizer (RDF)] under rainfed conditions was studied during the rainy (kharif), season of 2018 at Rajasthan College of Agriculture, Maharana Pratap University of Agriculture and Technology, Udaipur. The experiment was laid out in a factorial randomized block design, comprising 27 treatment combinations, each replicated thrice. Results revealed that, fertilization with 125% RDF recorded significantly higher plant height (249.42 cm), dry- matter accumulation pea plant (164.43 g) at harvesting, yield-attributing characters, grain and stover yields (4.06 and 11.12 t/ha respectively) and N-use efficiency than 100% RDF and 75% RDF. Among the hybrids, ‘SPH 1849’ gave the highest grain yield (4.85 t/ha) and among the varieties ‘CSV 31’ showed the highest grain yield (4.08 t/ha). Thus, sorghum genotype ‘SPH 1849’ with 125% RDF application (100 kg N + 50 kg P2 O5 + 50 kg K2 O/ha) showed better performance under rainfed condition in southern Rajasthan.