EFFECT OF INTEGRATED NUTRIENT MANAGEMENT PRACTICES ON PHYSIOLOGICAL, MORPHOLOGICAL AND YIELD PARAMETERS OF CHILLI (CAPSICUM ANNUM L.)

A field trial in tunnel was executed at Student Research Farm, near Vermicompost Center, Department of Agronomy, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad during December 2019 to May 2020 to develop nutrient management practices for chilli crop. There were six treatments viz., T-0: Soil test base recommended dose of chemical fertilizer, T-1: 100% cow dung, T-2: 100% cow dung vermicompost, T-3: 100% vermi-tea, T-4: 33% cow dung + 33% vermicompost + 34% vermi-tea, T-5: 25% chemical fertilizers + 25%vermicompost + 25% cow dung + 25% vermi-tea. The concerned trial was carried out with the objective to study various morphological traits (such as plant height, stem diameter, number of leaves plant -1, count of branches plant(-1), number of fruit plant(-1), fruit length, fruit fresh and dry weights), physiological attributes (chlorophyll a and b, total chlorophyll contents (a+b), chlorophyll contents of SPAD value, carotenoids, proteins, ascorbic acid, photosynthetic rate, stomatal conductance) and yield (yield plant(-1), plot(-1) and hectare(-1) was also calculated) of chilli variety Shandar. The obtained results indicated that treatment T-5 resulted in significantly higher (p<0.05) fruit yield (212.00g/plant, 17kg/plot and 6.20ton/ha) followed by treatment T-0 and T-1 produced significantly less fruit yield (160.0 g/plant, 11. 33 g/plot, 4.66 ton/ha and 148.67 g/plant, 10 kg/plot, and 4.25 ton/ha respectively) compared to all other treatments.