Effect of Pre-Harvest Application of Plant Bio-Regulators and Micro-Nutrient on Fruit Retention, Yield and Quality of Ber

In order to assess the effect of pre-harvest application of plant bio-regulators and micro-nutrients on fruit retention, yield and quality of ber cv. Banarasi Karaka was carried out in the Garden, Department of Fruit Science, C.S. Azad University of Agriculture and Technology, Kanpur (U.P.) between October 2022 to March 2023. The experiment was carried out using eight treatments viz., GA₃ @ 15ppm and 25ppm, NAA @ 40ppm and 50ppm and ZnSO₄ @ 0.2% and 0.4% including a control (water control), which were replicated trice in randomized block design. It is reported that the application of GA₃ @ 15ppm + NAA @ 40ppm + ZnSO₄ @ 0.2% significantly increased fruit set (162), fruit weight (16.69g), maximum pulp weight (14.31g), fruit width (2.93 cm), ascorbic acid (94.77 mg per 100 g pulp), volume (14.09 cc), specific gravity (1.098 g/cm³), total sugar (13.25 %) and fruit yield (114.70 kg per tree). The plants treated with NAA @ 50ppm resulted in minimum fruit drop (83.4 %) and highest fruit retention (16.66 %), fruit volume (14.40 cc) and fruit length (4.97 cm) in ber fruits under the North Indian plain.