Basant Chalise1,2,*, Arjun Kumar Shrestha2 , Arvind Srivastava2 and Kalyani Mishra Tripathi2
1 Directorate of Agricultural Research, Nepal Agricultural Research Council, Khajura, Banke, Nepal
2 Agriculture and Forestry University, Faculty of Agriculture, Department of Horticulture, Rampur, Chitwan, Nepal
* Corresponding Author’s Email: basantchalise@gmail.com,
Orcid IDs:
Basant Chalise: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6203-1230
Arjun Kumar Shrestha: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9253-2033;
Arvind Srivastava: https://orcid.org/0009-0001-5628-0094;
Kalyani Mishra Tripathi: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4434-9306
Received on: 14 July, 2024 Revised on: 6 November, 2024 Accepted on: 12 November, 2024
Abstract
A field experiment was conducted at DoAR, Khajura, Banke, Nepal to find the effect of different types of mulching materials on yield and yield-attributing parameters of ‘Grand Naine’ banana for the two cropping periods, 2020-2021 and 2021-2022. The field was laid out in RCBD having seven treatments replicated three times. Tissue culture plants were planted at 2×2 m spacing in 16 m2 plots, where there were four plants per plot. FYM and chemical fertilizers were applied @ 20 kg and 250:250:350 g NPK per plant per crop cycle along with 0.5% ZnSO4 , 0.2% FeSO4 , 0.2% CuSO4 , and 0.1% Borax was applied as a foliar spray at 3rd, 5th and 7th months after planting. Among the different types of mulches, the bunch length (120.60 cm), distance between first and final hand of bunch (75.50 cm), number of hands (10.00), weight of second hand (3.13 kg), finger length (22.57 cm), girth (13.75 cm), and weight (171.90 g), bunch weight (24.30 kg), and yield (60.76 tha-1) were recorded the highest with banana leaves mulch which was closely followed by black plastic mulch. The results of the experiment revealed that as compared to un-mulched plots, mulched plots produced the better yield-attributing parameters and yield of banana. Therefore, banana growers are recommended to use banana leaves as a mulching materials for higher yield. As an alternative, black plastic mulch can used for effective moisture retention and weed control, minimizing soil erosion and higher bunch yield.