Combined effect of nutrient management and Mepiquat chloride on HDPS cotton: Growth and yield analysis

Abstract

A field experiment was conducted during kharif, 2023 at the College Farm, Rajendranagar, to evaluate the combined effects of nutrient management and Mepiquat Chloride (MC) on growth regulation and yield of HDPS cotton. The study was laid out in a Randomized Block Design with nine treatments consisting of 100% RDF, 50% RDF substituted with nano-DAP and two MC formulations (Chamatkar and Egnitus) applied either at 40 & 55 DAS or 50 & 65 DAS. Application of 50% RDF + 50% nano-DAP produced the tallest plants (105 cm) and longest internodes (5.57 cm), but this excessive vegetative vigour resulted in poor biomass partitioning and the lowest seed cotton yield (1263 kg ha-1). Among the treatments, 100% RDF + Egnitus @ 80 ml acre-1 and 100% RDF + Chamatkar @ 0.6 ml L-1 at 50 & 65 DAS recorded the highest boll number, boll weight and seed cotton yield. The study concludes that 100% RDF combined with MC application at 50 & 65 DAS using either Chamatkar @ 0.6 ml L-1 or Egnitus @ 80 ml acre-1 is the most effective strategy for optimizing canopy architecture and maximizing HDPS cotton productivity.