Growth and yield of finger millet (Eleusine coracana L.) varieties as influenced by zinc fortification

Abstract

A field experiment entitled ‘Response of finger millet (Eleusine coracana L.) varieties to zinc fortification’ was conducted during the kharif seasons of 2023 and 2024 at the College Farm, N. M. College of Agriculture, Navsari Agricultural University, Navsari, to evaluate the impact of zinc application through soil and foliar modes on the growth, yield and quality of finger millet. The experiment was laid out in a factorial randomized block design with three varieties (V1: WN-259, V2: GNN-7, V3: GN-8) and nine zinc fortification treatments, ranging from control to combinations of soil and foliar applications of ZnSO₄. Results revealed that zinc fortification significantly influenced crop performance, with the treatment F9 (Soil application of ZnSO₄ @ 25 kg/ha + foliar spray @ 1% at tillering and panicle initiation stages) recording the highest plant height (98.39 cm), dry matter accumulation (5654 kg/ha), tillers (54/m²), panicle length (9.75 cm), fingers per panicle (8.68), grain yield (1924 kg/ha) and straw yield (4811 kg/ha), followed closely by F8 (same soil dose + 0.5% foliar spray). Thus, combined soil and foliar application of ZnSO₄, particularly at 25 kg/ha soil + 1% foliar spray, proved most effective in enhancing finger millet performance under the agro-climatic conditions of South Gujarat.