Effect of foliar application of nutrients on growth, yield and quality of mango under rain-fed conditions of Himachal Pradesh

Present study was conducted by KVK Mandi for two years to assess the effect of foliar application of nutrients on the various parameters of mango. The uniform trees of cultivar Dashehari planted at a distance of 8x10 m were selected for the study. The treatment consists of calcium chloride @1.0% (T₁), borax @ 0.5% (T₂), calcium chloride @ 1.0% + borax @ 0.5% (T₃), zinc sulphate @ 0.5% (T₄) and control (T₅). The experiment was laid under randomized block design with five treatments and four replications. The nutrients were applied at marvel stage of fruits. The data of both the years were pooled and mean was given in the result. All the treatments significantly influenced the growth, yield and quality of fruits over control. Treatment combination comprising of calcium chloride @1.0% + borax @ 0.5% (T₃) resulted in highest shoot extension growth (37.20 cm), yield (45.93 q/ha), fruit weight (200.45 g) and fruit volume (195.57 ml) followed by application of Borax @0.5% (T₂) during both the years of study. Chemical quality parameters viz., total soluble solids, reducing and total sugars were found better under borax @ 0.5% (T₂) treatment while acidity was maximum under zinc sulphate @ 0.5% (T₄). Lowest values of all these parameters were recorded under control (T₅).