Effect of different levels of charcoal and nitrogen on growth and yield traits of broccoli

Abstract

Charcoal is a carbon-rich organic matter, which serves as a soil conditioner when applied to agricultural fields. When used in combination with nitrogen fertilizers, it has a synergistic effect that boosts plant growth. However, charcoal application alone or in combination with nitrogen fertilizer on vegetable crops is not fully understood. Therefore, a pots experiment was carried out to investigate the effect of charcoal and nitrogen levels on the growth and yield of broccoli. The variety of broccoli used was Centauro. The experiment was laid out in a two-factor Completely Randomized Design with five replications during the winter season of 2019–2020 at Sundarbazar, Lamjung, Nepal. Treatments consisted of four levels of charcoal (0%, 2.5%, 5%, and 7.5% per weight of soil) and three levels of nitrogen (0, 187.5 and 375 kg N ha–1). Results revealed that increasing nitrogen levels from 0 to 375 kg N ha–1 significantly increased the number of leaves, leaf area, head diameter, head weight and aboveground biomass. The maximum head weight per plant (258.77 g) was found by applying a nitrogen level of 375 kg N ha–1 and the lowest value at 0 kg N ha–1. The application of increasing levels of charcoal significantly improved root length, leaf area and head diameter. It was concluded from the results that the optimum nitrogen level for broccoli production could be 375 kg N ha–1.

Keywords

• brassica oleracea l. var. italica
• soil conditioner
• nitrogen fertilizers
• nutrition