Comparative study on growth response of leaf lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) to natural farming practices under year round production system in mid hills of Himachal Pradesh

Abstract

The present study was conducted to evaluate performance of leaf lettuce under natural farming practices in year round production system at Horticultural Research & Training Station and KVK, Kandaghat, Solan in the years 2022-23 and 2023-24. The experiment was laid out in Randomized Complete Block Design (Factorial) with three replications comprising of twelve treatment combinations of three levels of ghanjeevamrit viz., M1 (Control), M2 (Ghanjeevamrit @ 0.5 t/ha), M3 (Ghanjeevamrit @ 1t/ha) and four levels of natural liquid formulations viz., L1 (Control), L2 (Jeevamrit drenching @ 5%), L3 (Jeevamrit drenching @ 10%) and L4 (Jeevamrit drenching @ 15%). Saptandhanyakur (foliar spray @ 3%) + Sour butter milk (foliar spray @ 3%) was applied in all treatment combinations except M1L1, M2L1 and M3L1.Crop was transplanted during February, April, August and October months. The results revealed that treatment combination M3L4 (Ghanjeevamrit @ 1t/ha + Jeevamrit @ 15% + Saptandhanyakur @ 3% + Sour butter milk foliar spray @ 3%) recorded superior results for growth characters like days taken to marketable maturity, plant height, number of leaves per plant, leaf length and leaf breadth across all planting months. The results revealed significant variations in growth attributes due to seasonal effects and natural input treatments. Among the treatments, the combined application of higher levels of Ghanjeevamrit and Jeevamrit consistently enhanced growth parameters compared to lower levels and control plots. The study highlights the potential of natural farming inputs to sustain year-round lettuce production while minimizing synthetic inputs. These findings suggest that natural farming can be a viable approach for small and marginal farmers seeking to maintain soil health and crop productivity under diverse climatic conditions.