Comparative Performance of Papaya Grafts and Seedlings on Growth and Leaf Gas-Exchange Activity Under Field Condition

Papaya (Carica papaya L.) is an important fruit crop and the propagation through asexual means would maintain the original characteristics of the parent plants of dioecious cultivars. The phenomenon of growth and other relating characters like that of gas-exchange activities would highly helpful in assessing the performance of propagated papaya plants. The present investigation was conducted to study the comparative performance of field grown papaya grafts vs. seedlings for growth and leaf gas exchange activity. The results of the study revealed that the cleft grafts of Co.2/9–1(D) combination registered the higher stem girth, maximum number of leaves per plant, least flowering days, higher for leaf gas exchange activities of net photosynthetic rate (ìmol CO₂ m⁻² s⁻¹), stomatal conductance (mol H₂O m⁻² s⁻¹) and transpiration rate (mmolH₂O m⁻² s⁻¹). However, the side grafts of Pusa Dwarf/9–1(D) combination resulted in lower plant height, lower flowering and bearing heights.