Abstract:
A field experiment was conducted during rainy season, 2015 at the Research –cum-Instructional Farm, Indira Gandhi Krishi Vishwavidylaya, Raipur (Chhattisgarh) to assess the potentiality of sweet sorghum [
Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] Varieties under different planting densities and levels of N fertilizers. The results revealed that the growth parameters like plant height, Leaf production, Stalk diameter, Leaf area index, crop growth rate and dry matter accumulation were significantly influenced by varieties, levels of nitrogen and planting densities. Sweet sorghum variety SSV-84 registered significantly higher plant height 284.34(cm) with higher no. of leaves 12.28, recorded highest diameter 2.5 cm stalk diameter(cm), higher leaf area index 5.79, higher crop growth rate 2.24 (g plant
-1 day
-1)and greater dry matter accumulation 75.66 (g plant
-1) compared to CSV 24SS. Plant density of 11.11 plants m
-2 have more no of leaves 12.13 per plant, higher stalk diameter 2.39 (cm) along with higher leaf area index 5.53 as well as higher Dry matter accumulation 68.15 (g plant
-1) in comparison to higher planting density (13.33 plants m
-2) but plants of higher planting density (13.33 plants m
-2) have higher plant height 281.93 (cm) and greater Crop growth rate 1.75 (g plant
-1 day
-1) as compared to lower Plant density of 11.11 plants m
-2. Among different levels of N fertilizers, application of nitrogen at 120 kg N ha
-1 recorded the highest plant height 335.78 (cm), have maximum no of leaves 13.13 per plant, highest stalk diameter 3.10 (cm), highest Leaf area index 6.97, greater Crop growth rate 2.25 (g plant
-1 day
-1) as well as Dry matter accumulation 80.59 (g plant
-1) being significantly higher than other levels of nitrogen.