Vol. 12, Issue 12 (2023)

Author(s):
Vishwanath Kamanakeri, Krishna A, VK Deshpande and Sudha T

Abstract:
A field experiment was conducted to study the “Influence of Hydrogel application on growth, seed yield and quality in Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L)”. Experiment was carried out at Main Agricultural Research Station, University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad, Karnataka during rabi 2022-23. The chickpea is a significant rabi season pulse crop that is primarily grown in semi-arid and warm temperate parts of the world. The low average yield of chickpea in India can be attributed to its dependence on residual soil moisture during the cool dry season. Generally, the moisture level in the soil decreases gradually as the crop develops. Consequently, the plant faces escalating terminal moisture stress, which becomes a significant factor limiting chickpea growth and yield, especially in peninsular India. In this situation, the use of super absorbents or hydrogels has been found to be particularly efficient in improving the retention of applied water in the soil around the root zone by reducing percolation and evaporative losses, ensuring a better and longer supply of moisture to the crop. To evaluate the methods of hydrogel application in chickpea with eight treatments and three replications viz., T₁ (control untreated), T₂ (Seed hardening with CaCl₂ @ 2 g/kg), T₃ (Seed treatment of @ Pusa hydrogel 2.5 kg/ha), T₄ (Seed treatment of SPG1118 @ 2.5 kg/ha), T₅ (Slurry treatment of Pusa hydrogel at 1:25 ratio), T₆ (Slurry treatment of SPG1118 @ 1:25 ratio), T₇ (Soil application of Pusa hydrogel at 5 kg/ha), T₈(Soil application of SPG 1118 @ 5 kg/ha). The results revealed that seed treatment with SPG1118 at 2.5 kg/ha recorded significantly higher number of secondary branches (15.67), test weight (27.78 g), seed germination (97.33%), root length (17.43 cm), shoot length (15.76 cm), seedling vigour index (3230), seed yield (17.57 q/ha) and net returns (₹ 55296 ha^-1) compared to other treatments.