ENHANCEMENT OF THE SEEDLING QUALITY OF PAPAYA THROUGH SEED PRIMING AND GROWING MEDIA

Abstract

A pot experiment was conducted at the Net house of the Department of Horticulture, HSTU, from February 2023 to June 2023 to observe the effect of seed priming agents and growing media on papaya's germination and seedlings quality. The experiment consisted of nine seed priming treatments: T0 (Control), T1 (Distilled water hydration for 12 hrs), T2 (Coconut water @ 50%), T3 (Cow urine @ 6%), T4 (Moringa leaf extract @3%), T5 (GA3 @ 500ppm), T6 (NAA @200ppm), T7 (KNO3 @ 0.2%) and T8 (H2O2 @1.5%); thiree growing media viz. M1(Soil + FYM @ 2:1), M2 (Cocopeat + FYM @ 4:1), and M3(Soil + FYM + Cocopeat @ 2:1:1). The two-factor experiment was laid out in a CRD with three replications. The papaya seeds were soaked with priming agents‟ solutions for 12 hours. The seed priming technique showed significant effects on most of the parameters like germination (%), Speed of germination, normal seedlings (%), abnormal seedlings (%), vigor index, length (cm), girth of the seedlings (mm), number of leaves per seedling and leaf length and breadth of the seedlings (cm). Moringa leaf extract possessed the highest germination capacity (78.67%) with a high speed of germination (18.83), normal seedlings (66.00%), and maximum vigor (963.0cm). Seed priming with gibberellic acid (GA3) and Naphthalene acetic acid (NAA) also enhanced the growth and seedlings' quality of papaya. Different planting media significantly influenced the germination and growth of the seedlings. The highest germination (61.33%) was obtained from M3 media followed by M2. The combined effect of moringa leaf extract and a mixture of different growing media (M3) demonstrated a significant variation in the normal seedlings (68.00%) and speed of germination (20). The highest seedlings height (14.20cm) was found in the treatment combination of GA3 and M3. Moreover, NAA solution + M3 significantly affected the quality contributing characteristics of papaya seedlings. So, from the experiment, it was revealed that seed priming with moringa leaf extract, gibberellic acid (GA3), or Naphthalene acetic acid (NAA) + M3 media showed better performance concerning germination and quality attributes of papaya seedlings.