Vol. 14, Issue 12 (2025)

Author(s):
Kuruba Naveen Kumar, CM Kalibavi, Basavanneppa MA, Shwetha BN and Ashok Kumar Gaddi

Abstract:
A field experiment was conducted at the Agricultural Research Station (ARS), Siruguppa, during kharif 2024 to study the effect of foliar nutrition through organics on growth, yield, and soil properties in finger millet (Eleusine coracana L.) under irrigation. The experiment evaluated the impact of various foliar nutrition treatments applied at 30 and 60 days after sowing (DAS), in combination with the recommended dose of fertilizers (RDF). The results revealed that the treatment RDF + foliar spray of urea @ 2% (T₆) recorded significantly higher growth parameters such as plant height and leaf area at 30, 60, 90 DAS, and at harvest. Among the organic foliar nutrition treatments, RDF + foliar spray of panchagavya @ 3% (T₃) resulted in significantly higher growth attributes, which was on par with RDF + foliar spray of vermiwash @ 5% (T₄) and RDF + foliar spray of jeevamrutha @ 5% (T₅). The lowest growth performance was observed under RDF + water spray (T₁). Similarly, the highest grain yield (2615 kg ha?¹) and straw yield (5361 kg ha?¹) were recorded with RDF + foliar spray of urea @ 2% (T₆), followed by the organic treatments, with panchagavya @ 3% (T₃) being superior among them. The lowest yield was obtained from RDF + water spray (T₁). Overall, the study indicated that foliar application of urea @ 2% was most effective for enhancing growth and yield of finger millet under irrigated conditions, while among the organic sources, panchagavya @ 3% proved to be a promising alternative.