Effect of foliar spray of silicon and boron on fruiting and yield of rejuvenated mango (Mangifera indica L.) cv. Sonpari

Abstract

An experiment was conducted at Regional Horticultural Research Station, ASPEE College of Horticulture and Forestry, Navsari Agricultural University, Navsari, during two continuous years 2017-18 and 2018-19 to assess the effect of different silicon and boron sources on fruiting and yield of mango cv. Sonpari under South Gujarat conditions. The experiment was laid out in a Completely Randomized Design with factorial concept having ten treatment combinations comprising five levels of silicon and two levels of boron. Foliar spray of potassium silicate @ 1.5% (S3) was found better with respect to maximum fruit retention (4.14%), higher number of fruits at marble (11.05) and harvest (1.91) stages per panicle, higher number of fruits per tree (182.00) and yield (64.62kg/tree). Similarly, foliar spray of boric acid @ 1.2g L-1 (B2) gave maximum fruit retention (4.08%), number of fruits at marble (10.56) and harvest (1.78) stages per panicle, number of fruits per tree (172.80) and yield (60.94kg/tree). In interaction effect, combined spray of potassium silicate @ 1.5% + boric acid @ 1.2g L-1 (S3B2) gave maximum number of fruits per panicle at marble and harvest stages.