Vol. 8, Issue 12, Part B (2024)

A pot experiment was conducted at the Sorghum Research Unit, Dr. PDKV Akola, during the 2020-2021 Rabi season to evaluate the effect of boron nutrition on the physiological growth rates of Rabi sorghum (cv. PKV-Kranti). The experiment included nine treatment combinations: (T₁) RDF only, (T₂) RDF with soil application of boron at 1 kg ha⁻¹, (T₃) RDF with soil application of boron at 2 kg ha⁻¹, (T₄) RDF with foliar application of boron at 0.1 ppm at panicle initiation and flowering stages, (T₅) RDF with foliar application of boron at 0.2 ppm at panicle initiation and flowering stages, (T₆) RDF with soil application of boron at 1 kg ha⁻¹ plus foliar application at 0.1 ppm, (T₇) RDF with soil application of boron at 2 kg ha⁻¹ plus foliar application at 0.1 ppm, (T₈) RDF with soil application of boron at 2 kg ha⁻¹ plus foliar application at 0.2 ppm, and (T₉) RDF with soil application of boron at 1 kg ha⁻¹ plus foliar application at 0.2 ppm. The experiment was laid out in a completely randomized block design with three replications. The results showed that treatment T₇ (RDF with soil application of boron at 2 kg ha⁻¹ and foliar application at 0.1 ppm during panicle initiation and flowering) significantly enhanced the physiological growth rates, particularly Net Assimilation Rate (NAR), Relative Growth Rate (RGR), and Absolute Growth Rate (AGR), when compared to the other treatments.