Response of mulching and GA3 on the performance of cabbage (Brassica oleracea var Capitata)

The present investigation entitled "Response of mulching and GA3 on the performance of cabbage (Brassica oleracea var capitata)" was conducted at Agriculture Research Farm, Department of Horticulture, Raja Balwant Singh College, Bichpuri, Agra during Rabi season of 2024-25 to assess the influence of different mulching materials and GA3 concentrations on various growth and yield parameters of cabbage. The experiment comprised of two factors, factor A: mulching - 3 types (M0=Control (No mulching), M1=Black Polythene mulch and M2=Straw mulch) and factor B: GA3 - 3 levels (G0=Control (0 ppm GA3), G1=25 ppm GA3 and G2=50 ppm GA3). Nine treatment combinations were used (M0G0, M1G0, M2G0, M0G1, M1G1, M2G1, M0G2, M1G2 and M2G2). The test crop; green cabbage was used for the experiment. The variety, Pusa Mukta was considered for the present study. The experiment was laid out in a Factorial Randomized Block Design (FRBD) with three replications. The layout of the experiment was prepared for distributing the combination of mulching and GA3. Both Mulching and GA3 consisted of 3 different treatments. Treatment combinations were allotted at random. The study demonstrated that the combined application of black polythene mulch and gibberellic acid (GA₃) at 50 ppm significantly enhanced the growth and yield parameters of cabbage. Among the treatments, black polythene mulch (M₁) consistently recorded the highest values for plant height (39.12 cm), leaf length (28.22 cm) and leaf width (16.50 cm) at 90 days after transplanting (DAT), while the control (M₀) recorded the lowest. Similarly, GA₃ at 50 ppm (G₂) significantly improved plant growth traits, with a maximum plant height of 39.85 cm, leaf length of 27.78 cm and leaf width of 17.04 cm, whereas the untreated control (G₀) recorded the lowest values. The interaction of mulching and GA₃ was also significant, with the M₁G₂ treatment producing the maximum plant spread (along and across the row), stem diameter, and earliest head initiation (37.24 days), in contrast to M₀G₀, which showed the least performance. Yield-related traits such as fresh weight of the whole plant, trimmed head weight and head diameter were also significantly enhanced by the M₁ and G₂ treatments, with their combination (M₁G₂) recording the highest values (1.30 kg, 0.72 kg, and 43.18 cm, respectively).