Effect of Sowing Date and Nitrogen on Quality of Beet Leaf (Beta vulgaris var. bengalensis)

The experiment entitled “Effect of sowing date and nitrogen on quality of beet leaf (Beta vulgaris var. bengalensis)” was conducted during summer, 2020 at Vegetable Research Farm, RHRS, ASPEE College of Horticulture and Forestry, Navsari Agricultural University, Navsari, Gujarat, India. The experiment was laid out in Split plot design with five replications. The experiment was arranged with three levels of sowing date (D1:1st Fortnight of January D2:2nd Fortnight of January and D3:1st Fortnight of February) and four doses of nitrogen (N1:0 kg N ha-1, N2:50 kg N ha-1, N3: 75 kg N ha-1 and D4: 100 N kg ha-1). Total chlorophyll content (1.91 mg g-1), moisture content (88.51 %), ash content (7.37 %) and iron content (4.56 ppm) in plant from the 2nd cutting were recorded higher in 1st fortnight of January sowing (D1).

Among the nitrogen doses, ascorbic acid (71.07 mg 100 g-1), total chlorophyll content (2.18 mg g-1), moisture content (89.22 %) and ash content (8.65 %) were obtained higher with application of nitrogen @ 100 kg ha-1 (N4). The iron, nitrogen and potassium content (4.71 ppm, 1.83% and 2.67 %, respectively) in plant and nitrogen (231.18 kg ha-1) in soil were higher under nitrogen at 100 kg ha-1 (N4).

Beet leaf sown at 1st fortnight of January with 100 kg N ha-1 (D1N4) had given the best performance in the quality parameter i.e. total chlorophyll content (2.30 mg g-1).