Evaluating integrated use of potassium and mulching on growth and yield of onion

The optimizing management practices including optimum potassium use and mulching approaches are pre-requisite for profitable onion production. The research study was carried out at the Onion Research Institute Husri, Hyderabad, Agricultural Research Center Tandojam aimed to evaluate the integrated use of potassium and mulching on onion growth and yield. The experiment, which involved the nasarpuri onion variety, followed a three-replicated randomized complete block design (RCBD) with a factorial arrangement. The treatment details were as follows: Factor A represented potassium rates (kg K₂O ha⁻¹) (K₁= Control, K₂= 40, K₃= 50, and K₄= 60), and Factor B represented mulching (M₁= Without mulching and M₂= With mulching). Data were collected for various parameters, including plant height, stem girth, bulb diameter, bulb weight, leaf weight, bulb yield, and potassium content in leaves and bulbs. The findings showed that plant height ranged from 33.17 to 44.80 cm, stem girth from 6.79 to 14.10 cm, bulb diameter from 45.17 to 67.00 cm, bulb weight from 10,796 to 29,126 kg ha⁻¹, leaf weight from 1,610 to 4,353 kg ha⁻¹, and the number of leaves per plant varied from 7.20 to 13.15. Additionally, potassium content in leaves ranged from 1.50% to 1.86%, and potassium content in bulbs varied from 1.14% to 1.35%. Notably, the combination of 60 kg K₂O ha⁻¹ with mulching resulted in the most favorable outcomes across various parameters. These results emphasize the importance of integrated potassium management and mulching techniques in enhancing onion growth, yield, and potassium uptake