EFFECT OF N-DOSE AND SEED RATE ON GROWTH, YIELD AND QUALITY OF LEAFY QUINOA (Chenopodium quinoa Willd.)

Abstract

Executive Summary The project was carried out by setting an experiment at the research field of Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University, Dhaka during the period from November 2022 to June, 2023 to find out the optimum nitrogen dose and seed rate of quinoa as vegetables and seed. The trial comprised of four nitrogen doses in the main plot viz. (i) 0 kg N ha

18 -1 -N 1 ; (ii) 50 kg N ha ; (iii) 100 kg N ha -1 –N 3 and (iv) 150 kg N ha -1 –N along with four seed rates in the sub-plot viz. (i) 5 kg ha -1 -S 1 ; (ii) 10 kg ha -1 –S 2 4 ; (iii) 15 kg ha -1 –S 3 and (iv) 20 kg ha . The experiment was laid out in split-plot design with three replications assigning nitrogen doses in the main plot and seed rates in the sub-plot. Experimental results revealed that variation of nitrogen doses significantly influence on plant height at 75 daya after sowing (DAS), leaves pl ant - 1 at 34 DAS, leaf breadth at 27 DAS, shoot dry weight at 20 DAS, fresh shoot weight at 27 DAS, root weight at 20 DAS, SPAD value at 35 and 45 DAS, fresh leafy vegetable yield, seed yield and harvest index. The highest fresh veget abl e yiel d (6.58 t ha ) and seed yi eld (1. 02 t ha - 1 ) was recorded in N 4 (150 kg N ha -1 ).

On t he other hand, the parameters l i ke pl ant height, fresh vegetabl e yi eld and popul ati on densi t y showed t heir hi ghest perfor mance i n hi gher seed rat e (15-20 kg ha - 1 ) but hi gher number of l eaves pl ant - 1 , s hoot dr y wei ght, branches pl ant - 1 i n lower seed rate. The i nteract ion effect of t wo factors showed si gni ficant vari at i ons for all t he st udied paramet ers and t he hi ghest fresh vegetable yiel d (8. 49 t ha - 1 ) gi ven by N 4 S combi nat ion (150 kg N ha -1 with 20 kg seeds ha - 1 )

and seed yiel d (1.16 t ha - 1 4 ) gi ven by N combinati on (150 kg N ha -1 with 10 kg seeds ha - 1 ). Thus it can be concluded that quinoa shoul d be cul ti vat ed using 150 kg N wi th 20 kg seeds ha - 1 f or leafy vegetable purpose and 150 kg N wit h 10-15 kg seeds ha - 1 for seed pr oducti on.