Influence of Silicon Supplementation and Farmyard Manure on Yield Attributes of Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum Mill.) Var. SL-12: A Comparative Study

Abstract

The present investigation was carried out at Hi-Tech Unit, Department of Horticulture, Rajasthan College of Agriculture, MPUAT, Udaipur. The fourteen treatments for the tomato crop were evaluated with three replications under randomized block design. The results exhibit the significant effect of various treatments on growth, yield quality of tomato and their residual effect on different soil properties. Maximum number of clusters per plant (6.86), number of flowers per cluster (8.88), number of fruits per plant (27.73), fruit weight(83.47 g), fruit volume (77.28 cc), specific gravity (1.04 g/cc), fruit length (6.51 cm), yield per plant (1030.26 g), yield per plot (30.74 kg) and yield per ha (307.43 q/ha) was recorded with treatment T9 (RDF + 25 t ha-1 FYM + 100 kg ha-1Silicon through Diatomaceous earth). Maximum net return of 256182 found in T9 and maximum B: C Ratio (3. 88) was recorded with T10. The study suggests using treatment T9 for improved tomato yield and exploring silicon supplementation in cultivation practices. It emphasizes continuous soil monitoring and precision agriculture for sustainable production. Future research should focus on cost-effective methods, genetic studies and collaboration.