EFFECT OF DIFFERENT SOIL MIXTURES ON THE GROWTH AND YIELD OF RED AMARANTH FOR ROOFTOP GARDENING

Abstract

A pot experiment conducted at the Net House of Hajee Mohammad Danesh Science and Technology University from October to December 2023, the effect of various soil mixtures on red amaranth's growth and yield was investigated. Employing a Completely Randomized Design (CRD) with 7 treatments and 3 replications, the treatments included a control (T1), as well as T2 to T7 contained mixtures involving soil, vermicompost (VC), sand, ash, and bone meal powder in different proportions such as T2 = 70% soil + 20% VC + 5% sand + 5% Ash + 2.0 g kg-1 bone meal powder, T3 = 65% soil + 25% VC + 5% sand + 5%Ash + 1.5 g kg-1 bone meal powder, T4 =70% soil + 20% VC + 5% sand + 5% Ash + 1.5 g kg-1 bone meal powder, T5 = 60% soil + 20% VC + 15% sand + 5% Ash + 2.0 g kg-1 bone meal powder, T6 = 60% soil + 25% VC + 10% sand + 5% Ash + 1.0 g kg-1 bone meal powder and T7 = 60% soil + 25% VC + 5% sand + 10% Ash + 1.0 g kg-1 bone meal powder, respectively. The soil characterized as sandy loam with initial pH (5.25), OM (2.9%), total N(0.14%), available P (262.98 ppm), exchangeable K (1.21 meq.100g-1 soil) and available S (224.87 ppm),respectively. The results indicated that the highest growth and yield characters viz., plant height (9.33, 23.7 and 32.44 cm at 10, 20 and 30 DAS, respectively), leaf number (6.27, 9.33 and 14.78 at 10, 15 and 25 DAS, respectively), fresh weight (106.63 g) and root length (12.2 cm) were observed in T7 treatment where, 60% soil, 25% VC, 5% sand, 10% ash and 1.0 g kg-1 bone meal powder were applied and the lowest growth and yield characters were found in T1 treatment (control). Soil pH, OM, total N, available P, exchangeable K and available S content in post-harvest soil were also influenced by the application of different inorganic and organic fertilizers in a mixture form. The study underscores the positive influence of the specific mixture (T7) on soil parameters post-harvest. Conclusively, the application of 60% soil, 25% VC, 5% sand, 10% ash, and 1.0 g kg-1 bone meal powder as a composite appears to be a promising practice for cost-effective red amaranth cultivation in urban rooftop settings.