Abstract:
Elevated phosphorus (P) may improve productivity and suppresses common diseases of
mulberry plant. This study was undertaken to quantify elevated level of P supply for mulberry
cultivation with respect to the age of mulberry plant. A field experiment was conducted at
Bangladesh Sericulture Research and Training Institute (BSTRI), Rajshahi, Bangladesh to find
out the effect of elevated P on growth, leaf yield, leaf quality, nutrient uptake and infestation of
common diseases of mulberry plant. Six levels of P (0, 40, 80, 120, 160 and 200 kg/ha/yr) along
with BSRTI recommended basal doses (RBD) of nitrogen (N) and potassium (K) through 4 split
doses were applied during mulberry plant production. Result showed that the leaf yield was
increased by 71.67% for 6-10 year’s plant due to application of 160 kg/ha/yr P with four split
doses through BSRTI recommended basal doses of N and K. Similarly, the leaf quality
parameters viz: moisture (%), Chlorophyll-a, Chlorophyll-b, crude protein (%), soluble
carbohydrate (%), total sugar (%) and reducing sugar (%) except total mineral (%) were
increased by 11.63, 5.13, 9.09, 44.00, 42.21, 30.62 and 18.49 % respectively for the same
treatment. The average incidence percentages of common disease like powdery mildew, leaf spot
and leaf rust diseases were reduced by 26.77, 62.07 and 38.54 % respectively under the same
fertilizer management. This study concluded that the elevated P enhances mulberry leaf yield and
quality as well as suppresses the common diseases incidence of mulberry plant. |
