Foliar Spray of NPK and Gibberellic Acid on Growth and Yield of Chickpea Based Intercropping System

Abstract

A field experiment was carried out during rabi seasons of 2019-20 and 2020-21 at Birsa Agricultural University, Ranchi, Jharkhand. The experiment was laid out in split-plot design with 3 replications. The treatments were comprised of 9 main plots, viz., sole chickpea, sole wheat, sole linseed, sole safflower, sole mustard, chickpea + wheat (6:3), chickpea + linseed (6:2), chickpea + safflower (6:2), chickpea + mustard (6:2) and 3 sub-plots viz., water(control), foliar spray of 1% NPK (19:19:19) and GA3 (100 ppm). Results revealed that maximum values of growth parameter (like plant height, dry matter accumulation), yield attributes (like number of pods, capsules, capitula, siliqua/plant and spikes/m2, 100-seed weight in chickpea and 1000-seed weight), grain and straw yield as well as harvest index were recorded under chickpea+ mustard (6:2). With regards to different foliar spray treatments, the maximum values for the above-mentioned parameters were found to be higher under the foliar spray of GA3 (100 ppm) at 45 days after sowing during both the years of experimentation.