Enhancement of Growth and Yield of Cotton by Organic and Inorganic Nutrients with Phytohormone

Cotton is an important fibre and cash crop in India, contributing significantly to the country's industrial and agricultural economies. It provides the textile industry with its main raw material (cotton fibre). Cotton in India is a direct source of income for 6 million farmers, while the cotton trade and processing employs approximately 40-50 million people. Agriculture in the twenty-first century has encountered numerous hurdles in meeting the expanding population's food and fibre needs. Humans will confront greater challenges in meeting their requirements as the population grows to reach nine billion by 2050.

A field experiment was conducted in Farmer’s Field at Jayapuram Village, Natrampalli Taluk in Thirupathur District during Aug-Jan (2021-22) to investigate the effect of soil application of NPK fertilizers, Zn-enriched compost and foliar spray of ZnO2 and NAA on enhancement of cotton yield and quality in sandy loam soil.

Fertilizers (N: P2O5: K2O) were sprayed at the appropriate dose (60:30:30 kg ha-1) using Urea, SSP, and MOP. Zn-enriched compost (Zn-EC) was treated at 1.0 t ha-1 as a basal one week before sowing. As per treatment. ZnO2 at 0.1% was applied twice during the vegetative and blooming periods of the crop. The treatment included spraying NAA at 40 ppm twice during flowering and boll formation. Cotton cv. Sabari was cultivated as a test crop using suggested cultural methods. The highest seed cotton yield of 1813.73 kg ha-1 was observed with application of 75% RDF + Zn EC @ 1.0 t ha-1 + ZnO2 @ 0.1%+ NAA @ 40 ppm (T9). the present investigation clearly concluded that 75% RDF + Zn EC @ 1.0 t ha-1 + ZnO2 @ 0.1%+ NAA @ 40 ppm (T9) was the best treatment for enhancing growth, yield, quality and nutrient uptake by cotton cv. Sabari. The study examined how different treatments affected growth, yield characteristics, quality, and soil health.