Effect of STCR based fertigation on growth and yield contributing characters of capsicum grown in Inceptisol

Abstract

A field experiment aimed at validating fertilizer prescription equations was conducted during the Rabi season of 2023-2024 at the research farms of AICRP on Irrigation Water Management and the Post Graduate Institute. The study evaluated the effect of Soil Test Crop Response (STCR)-based fertilizer application through drip fertigation on the growth and yield-attributing traits of capsicum. The experiment was laid out with eight treatments replicated three times in a Randomized Block Design. The treatments comprised of, T₁-absolute control, T₂-GRDF (200:100:100 N:P₂O₅: K₂O kg ha⁻¹ + FYM 10 t ha⁻¹), T₃-As per soil test, T₄-STCR target I-250 q ha⁻¹ without FYM, T₅-STCR target II-300 q ha⁻¹ without FYM, T₆-STCR target I-250 q ha⁻¹ with FYM @ 10 t ha⁻¹, T₇-STCR target II-300 q ha⁻¹ with FYM @ 10 t ha⁻¹ and T₈-Only FYM @ 10 t ha⁻¹. Results from both locations revealed that treatment T₇ significantly enhanced key growth and yield parameters in capsicum, including average fruits per plant, fruit weight at 60 and 120 days after transplanting (DAT), canopy spread, and plant height at both 60 and 120 DAT. These improvements were statistically comparable to those observed with treatment T₅.