Effect of Iron and Zinc on Growth, Yield and Quality of Cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L.) under South Gujarat Condition
A field experiment was carried out at College Farm, Navsari Agricultural University, Navsari on clayey soils during summer season of the year 2019 to study the Effect of iron and zinc on growth, yield and quality of cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L.) under south Gujarat condition. The results of experiment indicated that growth and yield attributes viz., plant height at 60 DAS and at harvest, number of branches per plant, number of nodules per plant, number of pods per plant, pod length, seed and haulm yield (955 and 2008 kg/ha, respectively) and test weight increased significantly with soil application of FeSO4 @ 25.0 kg/ha which was significantly higher over control but remained at par with soil application of 12.5 kg FeSO4/ha. Similarly zinc is also an essential plant nutrient for plant growth and yield. Zinc application had also positive effect on growth and yield attributes viz., plant height at 60 DAS and at harvest, number of branches per plant, number of nodules per plant, number of pods per plant, pod length, seed and haulm yield (972 and 2030 kg/ha, respectively) and test weight increased significantly with soil application of ZnSO4 @ 25.0 kg/ha which was significantly higher over control but remained at par with soil application of 12.5 kg ZnSO4/ha. Significant improvement in protein content in seed with soil application of both FeSO4 and ZnSO4 @ 25.0 kg/ha.