Effect of Spacing and Fertilizer on The Growth and Yield of Onion

Abstract

The experiment was conducted at the On-Farm Research Division (OFRD), Agricultural Research Station, Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute (BARI) Daulatpur, Khulna during the period from December, 2011 to March, 2012 to study the effects of spacing and fertilizer on the growth and yield of onion. Three spacings viz. 10 x 10 cm, 15 x10 cm and 15 x 15 cm with three fertilizer combinations viz. soil test based fertilizer dose (STB); integrated plant nutrient system (IPNS) based fertilizer dose and farmers' practice were studied on the growth and yield of onion. The two factor experiment was laid out in a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replications. The size of unit plot was 1.5 × 1.2 m. Thirty five day old seedlings of BARI Piaz 1 were transplanted on 26th December, 2011. The results demonstrated that plant spacing had significant effects on growth, yield components and yield of onion. The widest spacing (15 × 15 cm) produced the highest individual bulb weight (23.41 g) and bulb diameter (3.91 cm) however the spacing 15 × 10 cm produced the highest yield (14.11 t/ha). The lowest yield (10 t/ha) was obtained from the widest spacing of 15 × 15 cm. Different fertilizers exhibited significant variation in respect of individual bulb weight, bulb diameter and yield. The maximum bulb weight (20.65 g) and yield (12.56 t/ha) were recorded in IPNS based fertilizer dose while farmers' practice produced the lowest yield (12.18 t/ha) which is statistically similar to that of IPNS based fertilizer dose. The combined effect of fertilizer and plant spacing had significant effect on growth and yield of onion. The highest yield (15.17 t/ha) was obtained from the spacing of 15 x 10 cm coupled with IPNS based fertilizer dose and the lowest yield (9.70 t/ha) was found in 15 × 15 cm spacing with farmers' practice.