Growth and Yield of Sunflower under the Integrated Farmyard Manure and Potassium Fertilization

Abstract

The study was conducted during the autumn of 2022 Session at the Students' Experimental Farm Department of Agronomy, Sindh Agriculture University Tandojam, using a Randomized Complete Block Design. Objective: To assess how varying levels of Farmyard Manure and potassium affect the growth and seed production of sunflowers. Methods: The study utilized five different Farmyard Manure treatments and three potassium stages. The variety HO-1 underwent the following treatments: T1 = Control (0-ton Farmyard Manure+ 0 kg ha-1 potash), T2 = 5-ton Farmyard Manure+ 30 kg ha-1 potash, T3 = 5-ton Farmyard Manure+ 60 kg ha-1 potash, T4 = 5-ton Farmyard Manure+ 80 kg ha-1 potash, T5 = 5-ton Farmyard Manure+ 120 kg ha-1 potash. Results: The best results were found in T5 (5 tons of Farmyard Manure + 120 kg ha-1 Potash), which had the largest plant girth (11.2 cm), largest head diameter (48.5 cm), tallest plant (247.4 cm), highest number of seeds per head (1971.3), heaviest seed weight (69.5 g) per head, seed index (34 g), and maximum seed yield (2725.7 kg ha-1). T4 closely trailed, showing positive results (5 tons of farmyard manure plus 80 kg ha-1 potash). Conclusions: In conclusion, the study demonstrates that the optimal combination for maximizing sunflower growth and yield is the application of 80 kg ha-1 of potassium and 5 tons of Farmyard Manure.