Author(s): S. K. DAS AND A. CHAKRABORTY

Abstract: Field experiments were conducted during rabi seasons of 2015-16 and 2016-17 at the ‘C-Block’ Farm of Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Kalyani, Nadia, West Bengal, India to determine the response of potato to zinc application. The experiment was laid out in a Randomized Block Design with four replications having five treatments viz. T1- Recommended dose of fertilizer (RDF) of NPK, T2- RDF of NPK + 1.5 kg Zn ha-1, T3- RDF of NPK + 3.0 kg Zn ha-1, T4- RDF of NPK + 4.5 kg Zn ha-1 and T5- RDF of NPK + 6.0 kg Zn ha-1. Experimental results revealed that grade-wise tuber yield and total tuber yield were significantly influenced by zinc application. Tuber yield of potato cultivar ‘Kufri Jyoti’ was increased with increasing levels of zinc up to 6 kg ha-1. The tuber yield (30.37 t ha-1) and highest net return (` 81894 ha-1) was obtained with RDF of NPK + 6.0 kg Zn ha-1 as basal application which increased the total tuber yield by 20.32% over the control. Application of zinc significantly reduced the percentage occurrence of late blight and leaf spot disease in potato. Availability of NPK and Zn in post-harvest soil of potato was significantly influenced by application of zinc over RDF. The highest zinc availability (2.34 mg kg-1) was observed in the treatment T5 which was found statistically at par with the treatment T4 and T3.

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