Effect of pre-harvest treatments on growth and yield characters of multiplier onion (Allium cepa L. var. aggregatum Don.) cv. CO-5

Abstract

Onion (Allium cepa L.) belongs to the family Alliaceae,is a bulb crop and one of the important vegetables of theworld. India stands first in sharing 8% of the worldproduction with an average cultivated area of 1.06 millionhectare and an average annual production of 15.18 milliontonnes (NHB 2014-15). Small onions are also known ascountry onion, shallots, multiplier or aggregatum onion.This onion is produced only in southern states of Indiaviz., Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka (Kaveriand Thirupathi 2015). In Tamil Nadu, aggregatum onionis cultivated in 0.04 million hectares with a totalproduction of 0.47 million tonnes (NHB 2014-2015).Storage loss of onion is caused by sprouting, rottingand physiological loss in weight. According to Biswaset al. (2010) reported that storage losses in onion couldbe as high as 66%. Onion is highly perishable