Influence of bioenhancers, biofertilizers and mulching on growth and yield of guava cv. L-49

Abstract

The present investigation was carried out to evaluate the effect of integrated organic nutrient management practices on growth, flowering and yield attributes of guava. The result revealed that among the treatments, T₉ [Vermicompost (1 kg/tree) + Mulching with dry leaves + Panchagavya (5%) + PSB culture (50 g/tree) + Azotobacter (50 g/tree)] recorded maximum plant height increment (0.72 m), trunk girth (64.57 cm), shoot length (50.49 cm), number of leaves per shoot (48.83), fruit retention (51.93%) and yield per plant (53.80 kg/tree). Correlation analysis revealed strong positive association of vegetative growth traits and fruit retention with yield. Principal Component Analysis indicated that the first three principal components contributed 78.64 per cent of total variability, with plant height increment, trunk girth, shoot length, fruit retention and yield per plant contributing maximum towards PC1. The study concluded that integrated application of vermicompost, bioenhancers, mulching and biofertilizers significantly improved vegetative growth, flowering, fruit retention and yield of guava cv. L-49 under sustainable production systems.