Nutrient Requirement of Papaya (Carica papaya L.) for Yield Optimization and Commercial Cultivation Under Kerala Conditions

Papaya has gained commercial importance over the years because of its varied uses, mainly for table purpose. One of the reasons for low production in papaya is inadequate nourishment. As the export of papaya from India is rapidly increasing, there is a pressing need to enhance its productivity and improve the fruit quality. The present experiment was undertaken to study the response of major plant nutrients viz., nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium on growth, yield and quality of papaya and also to find out the optimum dose of NPK for commercial cultivation of papaya under Kerala conditions. The trial was conducted in confounded factorial randomized block design. Different levels of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium (200, 250 and 300) gram per plant per year were tried in six equal splits. Results revealed that application of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium at the rate of 250: 250: 500g per plant per year in six equal splits, at two months interval was economically viable and improved the growth, yield and quality of papaya.