Studies on the effect of foliar spray of Zn, Cu and B on growth, yield and fruit quality of sweet orange (Citrus sinensis L.) cv. Mosambi

Abstract

The present investigation was conducted at the farm of Department of Fruit Science, VCSG Uttarakhand University of Horticulture and Forestry Bharsar, Pauri Garhwal, Uttarakhand during 2016-17, to study the effect of foliar spray of Zn, Cu and B on growth, yield and fruit quality of sweet orange (Citrus sinensis L.) cv. Mosambi. The experiment was laid out in Randomized Complete Block Design with ten treatments and three replications. Based on the result obtained from the present investigations, it was observed that the highest annual shoot growth and leaf area were observed with treatment T8 [Zn (0.5%) + B (0.7%) + Cu (0.5%)], while fruit set, fruit weight, fruit length, fruit breadth, fruit volume, fruit yield/plant and estimate yield (tonnes/ha.) were recorded highest with the treatment T10 [Zn (0.5%) + B (0.7%) + Cu (0.7%)]. Hence, it was concluded that the micronutrients spray in treatment T10 [Zn (0.5%) + B (0.7%) + Cu (0.7%)] was found most effective in improving the yield and fruit quality of sweet orange cv. Mosambi.