Vol. 9, Special Issue 9, Part V (2025)

The present investigation entitled “Effect of foliar application of nano zinc on yield and quality of cabbage (Brassica oleracea var. capitata L.)” was conducted at Vegetable Research Farm (CRC-3), Department of Horticulture, ITM University, Gwalior (M.P.) during 2024-25. The experiment was laid out in Randomized Block Design with three replications comprising of nine treatments having nine level of nano zinc T1: Nano Zinc - 20 ppm, T2: Nano Zinc - 25 ppm, T3: Nano Zinc - 30 ppm, T4: Nano Zinc - 35 ppm, T5: Nano Zinc - 40 ppm, T6: Nano Zinc - 45 ppm, T7: Nano Zinc - 50 ppm, T8: Nano Zinc - 55 ppm and T9: Control. The seeds of cabbage cv. Golden Acre were sown in the nursery beds on 12th September, 2024 and the seedlings were transplanted on 30th October, 2024. The plot size was 2 m × 1.5 m and a spacing of 60 cm × 45 cm was followed. The observations were recorded on days to 50% maturity, no. of non-wrappers leaves, plant spread in length (cm), head shape index, gross Weight (g), net Head Weight (g), stalk length (cm), harvest index (%), equatorial diameter of head (cm), polar diameter head (cm), core size (cm), head compactness, yield per plot (kg), yield per hectare (t), TSS (°Brix) and ascorbic acid (mg/100 g). The study clearly demonstrated that foliar application of nano zinc had a significant positive impact on the growth, yield and quality attributes of cabbage. Different concentrations of nano zinc influenced specific parameters with early maturity observed at 20 ppm in T1, while maximum number of non-wrapper leaves (55 ppm-T8), plant spread (40 ppm-T5), head shape index and gross weight (25 ppm-T2) and head dimensions (30 ppm-T3) varied across treatments. Notably, treatment with 20 ppm in T1 nano zinc recorded the highest net head weight, while 50 ppm in T7 improved head compactness and ascorbic acid content. Yield performance was most pronounced at 35 ppm in T4, resulting in the highest per plot and per hectare yield along with superior TSS.