GROWTH AND YIELD RESPONSES OF TOMATO (LYCOPERSICON ESCULENTUM MILL.) UNDER DIFFERENT COMBINATIONS OF PLANTING TIMES AND FERTILIZERS

Abstract

This experiment was conducted to study the influence of planting date and fertilizer management on the growth and yield of tomato cv Ratan. The experiment consisted of two factors; Factor A: three planting dates, viz. 20 October, 5 November, 20 November and Factor B: four different doses of fertilizer, viz., control; 100 kg urea + 75 kg TSP + 100 kg MOP/ha; 200 kg urea + 150 kg TSP + 200 kg MOP/ha and 300 kg urea +225 kg TSP + 300 kg MOP/ha were used in 12 treatment combinations. The experiment was laid out in randomized complete block design with three replications. Combined effects of planting date and fertilizer management exhibited significant variation on plant height at 30 DAT, 45 DAT, and 60 DAT, number of flowers per plant, number of mature fruits per plant, fruit diameter, weight of individual fruit, weight of fruits per plant, fruit yield per plot and fruit per hectare. The highest fruit yields per plot (23.94 kg) as well as per hectare (73.89 t) were achieved from the treatment combination of planting at 5 November with 200 kg urea + 150 kg TSP + 200 kg MOP/ha.