Influence of liquid Zinc foliar application on growth and yield of transplanted <i>kharif</i> rice (<i>Oryza sativa</i> L.) under lower Gangetic plains of West Bengal

Rice (Oryza sativa L.) is one of the most important food crops after wheat produced and consumed more than 90% in Asia. Zinc fertilisation has become a high-priority research topic for addressing Zn-related nutritional diseases in humans and plants. Therefore, the influence of different doses of liquid zinc foliar application in conjunction with the recommended dose of chemical fertiliser (RDF) was evaluated, along with one control (RDF only) on wet season rice cv. Surochi (S-36) during the wet season of 2023 and 2024 at Instructional Farm under Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya's Instructional Farm in West Bengal.The experiment was laid out in a randomised complete block design (RCBD) with six treatment combinations replicated four times. The results revealed that the tallest plants with the highest dry matter accumulation were observed in RDF + foliar application of Zinatra@ 700 (Liquid Zinc 39.5%) at 750 ml/ha. The same treatment increased panicle number per hill, panicle length, grains per panicle, and grain and straw yields, being statistically comparable to RDF + foliar application of Zinatra@ 700 (Liquid Zinc 39.5%) at 500 ml/ha. The yield increase ranged between 16.67% and 46.79%. There was a significant and positive correlation between grain yield and plant height, dry matter accumulation, effective tillers/hill, panicle length, and grains/panicle. In grain and straw, foliar application of Zinatra@ 700 (Liquid Zinc 39.5%) at 750 ml/ha in combination with RDF led to a marked increase in N, P2O5, and K2O uptake. Hence, it is suggested a blended application of recommended dose of chemical fertilizer (RDF) with foliar application of Zinatra@ 700 (Liquid Zinc 39.5%) @ 750 ml /ha at tillering and panicle initiation stage exploit not just rice growth and yield but also grain nutritional content to increase rice production in West Bengal's Gangetic alluvial soil.