Effect of graded levels of potassium fertigation on growth of bell pepper grown in red bole soil under polyhouse

Abstract

The present investigation entitled “Effect of graded levels of potassium fertigation on growth, yield, nutrient uptake and quality of bell pepper grown in red bole soil under polyhouse” was conducted at the Instructional Farm Polyhouse, Dr. Sharadchandra Pawar College of Agriculture, Baramati, Maharashtra during June 2024 to October 2024. The experiment was laid out in a Completely Randomized Design (CRD) with five treatments and four replications comprising T1-Control, T2-Recommended dose of fertilizer, T3-Recommended dose of nitrogen and phosphorus + 125% Recommended dose of potassium, T4-Recommended dose of nitrogen and phosphorus + 150% Recommended dose of potassium and T5-Recommended dose of nitrogen and phosphorus + 175% Recommended dose of potassium. The growth parameters such as plant height, leaf area and chlorophyll content exhibited significant improvement across all growth stages with maximum values recorded at 90 days after transplanting. The treatment T5 (RDNP + 175% RDK) observed the highest plant height (99.12 cm), leaf area (91.94 cm²) and chlorophyll content (62.72 SPAD units). Application of RDNP + 175% RDK through fertigation recorded the highest plant height, leaf area and chlorophyll content at 90 DAT, indicating that higher potassium levels significantly improved vegetative growth of bell pepper under polyhouse conditions.