Effect of foliar application of micronutrients on yield of onion (Allium cepa L.)

Onion (Allium cepa L.) is one of the most important bulb crop in India, which plays a major role in supplementing the income of farmers. Sikar district is a hub of onion cultivation in Rajasthan but farmers didn't getting reasonable yield of onion. A preliminary survey was conducted in the district and to gather information on problems faced by farmers in the cultivation of onion crop. It was found that soils of district are deficit in zinc and boron and due to this, the productivity of the crop was not up to the mark. To overcome this problem, an On Farm Trial (OFT) was conducted by Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Fatehpur-Shekhawati, Sikar at 20 farmer's field during 2018–19 and 2019–20 to evaluate the effect of foliar application of micronutrients on yield and income of onion. Under trial, treatments consisted of spraying of ZnSo₄ @ 0.3% and Borax @ 0.5% at 30 and 45 days after transplanting and compared with control plot without using micronutrients. The pooled average data of the trial revealed that foliar application of zinc sulphate along with boron gave maximum yield of onion (349.25 q/ha) with B:C ratio (2.51), whereas, under control plot pooled average yield was 319.30 q/ha was recorded along with B:C ratio of 2.17.