Effect of leaf clipping on growth and yield of blackgram (Vigna mungo L.)

An experiment was conducted at Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University farm, Dhaka to investigate the effect of variety and leaf clipping on the growth and yield of blackgram (Vigna mungo L.) from March to June-2019. The experiment was laid out in a split-plot design with three replications. The treatments were Blackgram variety (3); V1: BARI Mash-1, V2: BARI Mash-2 and V3: BARI Mash-3, and leaf clipping (4); C0: No leaf clipping (control), C1: Clipping of 1st basal leaf, C2: Clipping of 2nd basal leaves and C3: Clipping of total apical leaves having no inflorescence. Growth, yield and yield contributing characteristics were compared under different treatments. Results indicated that variety and leaf clipping significantly affected most of the growth and yield contributing characteristics of blackgram. In the case of variety, mthe aximum value of the yield and yield contributing characteristics such as pod−1 length (8.99 cm), pods plant−1 (14.00), number of seeds pod−1 (9.78), 1000 seeds weight (48.58 g), and seed yield (1381.70 kg ha−1), were observed in var. BARI Mash-3. In the case of leaf clipping, maximum pod length (8.44 cm), pods plant−1 (15.18), seeds pod (9.32), 1000- seeds weight (48.33 g), seed yield (1306.7 kg ha−1), was recorded in Clipping of 1st basal leaf treatment. The blackgram var. BARI Mash-3 and clipping of 1st basal leaf was found superior in producing maximum pod length (9.32 cm), number of pods plant−1 (16.87), number of seeds pod−1 (10.80), 1000- seeds weight (51.67 g), and seed yield (1456.70 kg ha−1). So, var. BARI Mash-3 and clipping of 1st basal leaf may improve the growth and yield of blackgram. Bangladesh Agron. J. 2023, 26(1): 9-17