MAXIMIZING WATERMELON (CITRULLUS LANATUS THUNB.) GROWTH, YIELD AND QUALITY THROUGH SYNERGISTIC USE OF BIOFERTILIZERS AND INORGANIC NUTRIENTS

India occupies the distinguished rank of the second-largest global contributor to horticultural yields.However, the pressing need for escalated productivity and heightened quality has surfaced in light of the surging populace.The attainment of these goals mandates the adoption of ecologically benign technologies that amplify production, thus safeguarding national food security and engendering sustainable production paradigms.In recent times, escalating concerns regarding the deleterious repercussions of synthetic fertilizers on soil vitality and the environment have spurred interest.Within this framework, biofertilizers have emerged as a viable panacea, proffering a protracted and economically judicious alternative to these predicaments.In accordance with the aforementioned imperatives, an orchestrated field experiment, titled "Impacts of Biofertilizers Augmented with Inorganic Nutrients on the Growth, Yield, and Quality Metrics of Citrullus lanatus Thunb.(Watermelon)," was executed at the New Vegetable Farm, housed within the precincts of the M. S. Swaminathan School of Agriculture, an esteemed entity within the rubric of Centurion University of Technology and Management, sited in R. Sitapur, Odisha.A Randomized Block Design (RBD), encompassing ten distinct treatments, was employed, with a thrice-iterated replication protocol.The experimental ensemble encompassed a solitary watermelon cultivar, interwoven with three biofertilizers -Azotobacter, Phosphate Solubilizing Bacteria (PSB), and Potassium Solubilizing Bacteria (KSB), realized through eight distinctive permutations of treatment combinations.This was juxtaposed with controls representing both 100% and 75% of the Recommended Dose of Fertilizer (RDF).The biofertilizers were introduced individually Azotobacter, PSB, and KSB in addition to a composite application.The culmination of the investigation unveiled compelling outcomes.Parameters encompassing growth metrics, yield indices, and attributes related to yield exhibited discernible optima.For instance, the apical treatment involving 75% NPK + Azotobacter + PSB + KSB yielded maximal sub-creeper density per plant (3.93), a zenithal count of fruits per plant (3.80), and an unparalleled yield quantum per hectare (71.66 t).Correspondingly, the nadir of node occurrence for the first female flower (5.33), the swiftest chronology of male flower emergence (30.53 days), and the truncated interlude between flower inception and fruit formation (41.27 days) were emblematic of this treatment.Concomitantly, the most elevated assemblage of total soluble solids (12.40 Brix) and lycopene content (6.24 mg/100g) was realized through the medium of the 50% K, 100% N, P + KSB regimen.