Influence of pre-sowing seed treatment with nitrate salts and different sowing dates on performance of mustard
Abstract
Mustard (Brassica juncea L. Czern and Coss) seeds were soaked for 24 h either in solution of nitrate salts [(Mg(NO3)2, Ca(NO3)2 and KNO3)] or in distilled water and sown in field at three different dates of its cropping season. The parameters like plant height, number of leaves per plant, leaf area, leaf area index and net assimilation rate were found to increase with nitrate treatments in comparison to distilled water soaked and control (seeds directly sown in field without any prior treatment) sets. Among nitrates, Mg(NO3)2 showed better results followed by KNO3 and Ca(NO3)2 treatments. The plants raised from first date of sowing showed maximum plant height and leaf area but the mean number of leaves per plant and leaf area index were highest in plants with second date of sowing. Net assimilation rate was found best in the plants of third date of sowing. However the plants raised from second date of sowing showed higher values for most of the parameters in comparison with others. Data regarding yield and yield attributes like pods plant−1, pod weight plant−1, pod length, seed pod−1, seed plant−1 and test weight were increased in nitrate treated sets and in timely sown crops. However nitrate treatment to seeds showed an improvement in overcoming the late sown stress in mustard.
Keywords
Growth parameters, mustard, nitrate salts, seed treatment, sowing time
