Effect of micronutrients on quality of onion (Allium cepa L.)

A field experiment was conducted to evaluate the efficacy of micronutrients on the performances of onion (allium cepa L. var. Arka Kalyan) with respect to quality attributes of bulbs during 2014-15 at College of Horticulture (OUAT), Sambalpur, Odisha under All India Network Research Project on Onion and Garlic India. The experiment was laid out in RBD having four replication with following treatments: T1 (recommended 150:50:80:30 NPK kg ha-1 + FYM @ 20 t ha-1 + soil application of Zinc Sulphate @ 10.0 kg ha-1), T2 (recommended 150:50:80:30 NPK kg ha-1 + FYM @ 20 t ha-1 + foliar application of Zinc Sulphate @ 0.5% at 30 \u0026 45 days after planting (DAP)), T3 (recommended 150:50:80:30 NPK kg ha-1 + FYM @ 20 t ha-1 + soil application of Borax @ 10.0 kg ha-1), T4 (recommended 150:50:80:30 NPK kg ha-1 + FYM @ 20 t ha-1 + foliar application of Borax @ 0.25% at 30 \u0026 45 DAP), T5 (recommended 150:50:80:30 NPK kg ha-1 + FYM @ 20 t ha-1 + Foliar application of Micronutrient Mixture i.e. iron-2.5%,boron-0.5%,zinc -3%,copper -1%and manganese-1% @ 0.5% at 30 \u0026 45 DAP) and T6 (control). The result revealed significantly better bulb quality in terms of TSS (12.40-13.0Brix), ascorbic acid (11.58-12.03 mg100g-1), protein (10.63-12.53%) and total sugar (4.34-6.12%), was recorded in T5 followed by T4. Hence, it may be concluded foliar application of micronutrient mixture @ 0.25% followed by borax @ 0.5% at 30 and 45 DAP not only increase the quality attributing parameters but also enhance the consumer preference.