Impact of graded potassium fertigation on yield and quality of bell pepper

Abstract

The present study, entitled “Impact of graded potassium fertigation on bell pepper yield and quality” was conducted at the Instructional Farm Polyhouse, Dr. Sharadchandra Pawar College of Agriculture, Baramati, Maharashtra, during June to October 2024. The experiment was laid out in a Completely Randomized Design (CRD) with five treatments and four replications. The treatments consisted of: T1 - Control; T2 - Recommended dose of fertilizer, T3 - Recommended dose of nitrogen and phosphorus combined with 125% of the recommended dose of potassium, T4 - Recommended dose of nitrogen and phosphorus combined with 150% of the recommended dose of potassium and T5 - Recommended dose of nitrogen and phosphorus combined with 175% of the recommended dose of potassium. Application of graded levels of potassium fertigation significantly enhanced the yield and quality of bell pepper. Treatment T5 (recommended dose of nitrogen and phosphorus + 175% of the recommended dose of potassium) produced the highest number of fruits per plant, maximum fruit weight, total fruit yield, along with higher Vitamin C content and increased total soluble solids (TSS). These results indicate that higher potassium fertigation effectively maximizes both productivity and quality of bell pepper grown in red bole soil under polyhouse conditions.