Effect of plant growth regulators on growth, yield and yield contributing characters of brinjal (Solanum melongena L.) in coastal zone of Bangladesh

Salinity is a serious environmental issue that reduces the yield of vegetable crops. Brinjal is one of the world's most popular vegetable crops and its productivity and quality are heavily influenced by the salt content in the root area. Plant growth regulator management, however, is a key factor that can be used to increase brinjal production in moderate saline soils. The experiment was carried out at the Agricultural Research Field, Noakhali Science and Technology University, Noakhali, Bangladesh during the period from January to June 2022, to observe the effect of plant growth regulators on growth, yield, and yield contributing characters of brinjal (Solanum melongena L. V: Purple king ). The experiment was followed Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) comprising four treatments with three replications. The treatments were T0 (Control), T1 (Salicylic acid @ 60 ppm), T2 (Gibberellic acid @ 60 ppm), T3 (Naphthalene acetic acid @ 60 ppm). Data were recorded from different stages of plant growth viz, plant height, number of leaves per plant, number of branches per plant, number of fruits per plant, fruit length, fruit diameter, fruit weight, and yield. The maximum plant height (100.00 cm), number of leaves per plant (197.17) , number of branches per plant (17.17), number of flowers per plant (62.67), number of fruits per plant (34.42), fruit length (25.50 cm), fruit diameter  (3.33 cm), weight of fruit (92.67 g), yield per hectare (22.17 t ha-1) were measured from treatment T2 (GA3 @ 60 ppm). Results conclude that the application of gibberellic acid @ 60 ppm for brinjal cultivation gave better growth and yield in moderate saline soils. Res. Agric. Livest. Fish. Vol. 10, No. 2, August 2023: 91-97