The Effect of Organic and Inorganic Fertilizers on Cucurbita Moschata.
INTRODUCTION
Cucurbita moschata was discovered in southern Mexico around 5000 BCE and along with the coast of Peru around 3000 BCE, South America is thought to be the secondary site of domestication.
This species spread to northeastern Mexico by 1400 BCE and to the southwest U.S. by 900 CE. Cucurbita moschata made its way to the Gulf Coast and the Caribbean by way of early Spanish explorers.
Crooknecks and cheese pumpkins, original to North America, were cultivated by colonists in the 1600s and variations can be found in India, southeastern Asia, Asia Minor, and in Japan. By the 19th century, Cucurbita moschata was established in northern Africa as well.
Cucurbitaceae is one of the largest families in the vegetable kingdom consisting of the largest number of edible type species. Pumpkin (Cucurbita moschata Poir.) is one such important vegetable belongs to family Cucurbitaceae.
Pumpkin fruits are extensively used as vegetables both in the immature and mature stages. The yellow and orange-fleshed fruits are very rich in carotene, which is a precursor of Vitamin-A with fair quantities of vitamins B and C (Prem Nath et al., 1973).
In modern agriculture, chemical fertilizers constitute the major portion of the total cost of seed production. As the cultivation of pumpkin is fast expanding, the growers often come across one or the other problems that limit its fullest expressions of growth and productivity.
Hence, these problems could be overcome partially or completely by using different agrochemicals like mineral nutrients and growth regulators.
The optimum doses of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium vary greatly with the length of the growing season, fertility status of soil, soil type, cultivar, geographical location, and the environmental factors. These factors will have a marked effect on the growth and yield parameters of pumpkin.
Objective Of The Study
To find out the effect of organic and inorganic fertilizers on Cucurbita moschata.
To ascertain the proper concentration of this organic and inorganic fertilizer that is required by Cucurbita moschata for it proper growth and best method of application of the fertilizer either ring method or broadcasting method.
To give possible recommendations on what to do for the proper growth and development of Cucurbita moschata.
Plant growth regulators, a new generation of agrochemicals, when added in small amounts, modify the natural growth right from seed germination to senescence in crop plants. Among them, the use of GA3 is of considerable interest in different fields of agriculture and horticulture.
Studies conducted elsewhere indicated the beneficial effects of chemical fertilizers and growth regulators on crop growth, fruit yield, seed yield, and seed quality aspects in cucurbitaceous crops.
Therefore, there is an urgent need to generate precise information with regard to the requirement of optimum doses of chemical fertilizers and appropriate stage of spray with suitable growth regulators which help in better growth habits, fruiting, and seed yield combined with better quality.
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