EFFECT OF POTASSIUM AND SULPHUR ON THE GROWTH AND YIELD OF POTATO (Solanum tuberosum L.)

Abstract

The experiment was conducted during November 2021 to February 2022 in the farm of Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University. The experiment consisted of two factors: Factor A: three K levels viz. control K 0 (0 kg K ha -1 ), K 1 (120 kg K ha -1 ) and K 2 ) and Factor B: three S levels viz. control S 0 (0 kg S ha -1 ), S 1 (15 kg S ha -1 (25 kg S ha -1 ). The experiment was laid out in Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with three replications. Different potassium and sulphur levels influenced significantly on most of the recorded parameters. In case of different K levels, the highest results regarding growth, yield and yield contributing parameters were obtained from K 2 (160 kg K ha -1 ) compared to K 1 (120 kg K ha -1 ) and control. K 2 (160 kg K ha ) showed the highest number of tuber hill -1 (7.47), weight of tuber hill -1 (273.90 g), dry weight of 100 g fresh tuber (22.43 g), tuber weight plot -1 (14.24 kg) and tuber yield ha (28.48 t). Available P, K and S content of post-harvest soil was also highest from K 2 1 ) treatment whereas pH and OC content were not affected by K treatments. Regarding sulphur treatment, S 1 (15 kg S ha -1 ) showed best results on most of the yield and yield contributing parameters compared to S 2 (25 kg S ha -1 (160 kg K ha ) and S 2 -1 ) and control. Treatment S 1 (15 kg S ha -1 ) showed the highest number of tuber hill -1 (7.15), weight of tuber hill (252.40 g), dry weight of 100 g fresh tuber (21.41 g), tuber weight plot -1 (13.13 kg) and tuber yield ha -1 1 (26.25 t). The S content of postharvest soil affected significantly and S 2 ) treatment gave highest result (28.47 ppm) whereas pH, OC, P and K content were not affected by S treatments. In terms of treatment combination of potassium and sulphur, the treatment combination K 2 S 1 showed the highest number of tuber hill -1 (7.87), weight of tuber hill -1 (285.90 g), dry weight of 100 g fresh tuber (23.62 g), tuber weight plot

(14.87 kg) and tuber yield ha -1 (29.73 t) whereas the lowest was recorded from K 0 . The P, K and S content of postharvest soil, significantly affected by interaction of K and S. The highest concentration of N, K and S (24.20 ppm, 1.10 meq/100 g soil, and 29.32 ppm, respectively) was recorded from K 2 S 2 while the lowest was from K 0 whereas pH and OC content of postharvest soil did not differ significantly among the treatment combinations. So, the treatment combination of K 2 S 1 (160 kg K ha -1 -1 (160 kg K ha -1 (25 kg S ha S 0 S 0 with 15 kg S ha ) can be considered as best compared to the rest of the treatment combinations in terms of potato yield.