Vol. 12, Special Issue 9 (2023)

Author(s):
Pushpraj Singh, VK Patel, CK Desai and AT Chaudhari

Abstract:
An on-farm trail (OFT) on Arka Rakshak, a triple disease-resistant F1 hybrid tomato, was tested at different farmer fields under the KVK Banaskantha-II Jurisdiction area from 2019–20 to 2021–22. The results on farmer fields revealed that an average plant height of (93.94 cm) was recorded in Arka Rakshak, while in the local check, it was (80.50 cm). However, 47% more branches were recorded in Arka Rakshak compared to the Cheak. Flower initiation and first fruit picking were 1.33 and 11.53 days earlier in Cheak compared to Arka Rakshak, respectively. However, the maximum number of fruit pickings was 9.07 in Arka Rakshak. The maximum average number of fruits per plant was found to be higher in Arka Rakshak (39.87) and lowest in the local check (26.10). Maximum fruit weight was recorded in Arka Rakshak (84.96 g) compared to local check (71.80 g), whereas maximum fruit yield per plant was recorded in Arka Rakshak (3.39 kg) and minimum in local check (1.90 kg). The maximum average fruit yield was recorded at 609.51 q/ha in Arka Rakshak, which was 80.6% higher than the local check. There was no bacterial blight incidence in the Arkra Rakshak hybrid, whereas 16.6% bacterial blight incidence was recorded in the local Cheak during the flowering and fruit setting periods. The incidence of tobacco leaf curl virus was observed to be very low (1.71%) in the Arka Rakshak compared to the local Cheak (14.9%). However, the infestation of early leaf blight was found to be 1.08% as compared to the local check of 20.1%. The maximum average income of Rs. 735260/ha was obtained from Arka Rakshak, compared to the local check of Rs. 347938/ha. Further, the net profit and B:C ratio were found to be the maximum (Rs. 608027/ha and 5.9) compared to the local check (Rs. 250023/ha and 4.3), respectively.