Effect of Various Establishment Techniques and Spacing on Growth and Yield of Browntop Millet

Abstract

Browntop millet (Urochloa ramosa L.) is a drought-tolerant minor millet suitable for cultivation under marginal soils and rainfed conditions. However, information on suitable establishment methods and optimal spacing to improve productivity is limited. A field experiment was conducted during late Kharif 2025 at the Instructional Farm of Karunya Institute of Technology and Sciences, Coimbatore. The experiment was laid out in a split-plot design with two establishment methods (direct sowing and transplanting) as main plots and six spacing treatments (20 × 10, 30 × 10, 45 × 10, 20 × 20, 30 × 20, and 45 × 20 cm) as subplots, replicated three times. Direct sowing recorded higher plant height (104.3 cm), dry matter production (4373.6 kg/ha), grain yield (1178.4 kg/ha), straw yield (2823.9 kg/ha) and harvest index (31%) compared to transplanting. Among spacing treatments, 45 × 10 cm produced the highest grain yield (1368.3 kg/ha), while 20 × 10 cm recorded higher straw yield, and wider spacing 45 × 20 cm recorded the highest harvest index (37.20%). The findings indicate that direct sowing combined with 45 × 10 cm spacing is a suitable agronomic practice for improving the browntop millet productivity. Economic analysis also revealed that direct sowing with 45 × 10 cm spacing resulted in higher net returns and benefit–cost ratio.