Effect of sowing dates and varieties on growth, yield and nutrient uptake of summer mungbean (Vigna radiata)

An experiment was conducted during the summer of 2013 at Jammu, Jammu and Kashmir, to study the effect of sowing date and variety on growth, yield and nutrient uptake of mungbean [Vigna radiata (L.) Wilczek]. The experiment was laid-out in a split-plot design, consisting of 4 sowing dates (20 March, 5 April, 20 April and 5 May) as main-plot treatments and 4 varieties ‘SML 668’, ‘Samrat’, ‘Meha’ and ‘IPM 02-3’ as subplot treatments, with 3 replications. Among the sowing dates, the highest grain yield (0.93 t/ha) of summer mungbean was recorded when the crop was raised on 20 March, which was statistically at par with 5 April, but significantly higher than 20 April and 5 May. Among the mungbean varieties, the highest grain yield was observed in ‘Samrat’, being statistically at par with ‘SML 668’ and significantly superior to ‘IPM 02-3’ and ‘Meha’. The sowing dates and varieties had significant influence on the pods/plant, grains/pod and 1, 000-seed weight. The highest pods/plant (17.3), grains/pod (7.3) and 1, 000-seed weight (37.8 g) were obtained with 20 March sowing, which was significantly higher than that obtained with 5 May sowing. Among the varieties, the maximum pods/plant (16.6) were recorded with ‘IPM 02-3’, being statistically at par with ‘Samrat’. However, the highest grains/pod (7.4) were with ‘Samrat’ which was at par with ‘SML 668’. The growth parameters, viz. plant height, dry-matter accumulation and leaf-area index, were increased with the delay in sowing from 20 March to 5 April. The protein content in grain was not influenced by sowing dates and varieties.