Nitrogen Fertilizer Rates and Spacing on Yield Components of Pepper Capsicum annum L. at Bure District, North Western Ethiopia

Mihret Alemayehu; Nuru Worku; Solomon Ali

Abstract

Hot pepper is an important spice and vegetable crop in Ethiopia, but its productivity is low due to poor agronomic practices including inappropriate nutrient supply and poor inter-row spacing management. The experiment was carried out in the field in the year 2019/20 to know the effect of the rates of N fertilizer and spacing on the yield-attributed factors of pepper. The experiment consisted of factorial combinations on four levels of nitrogen fertilizer rate (38, 76, 114, and 152 kg Nha-1) and three levels of intra-row spacing (20, 30, and 40 cm). About 12 treatments were examined at three replications of the Randomized Complete Block Design. Data on phenological and growth parameters, yield and yield components, and partial budget analysis were collected and analyzed using Statistical Analysis System (SAS) 9.3 version. The result showed that the main and interaction effects of nitrogen and intra-row spacing had a significant effect on fruit dry matter, total and marketable fresh yield, total dry yield, marketable dry yield, and non-marketable dry yield. The highest plant height (63.93 cm), number of branches per plant (23.26), fruit size (11.19 cm), fresh red fruit weight (12.81 g/fruit), dry red fruit weight (1.71 g/fruit), and dry matter content (17.72%) were recorded from 114 kg N ha-1 with 30 cm inter-row spacing. The highest economic benefit of 139,667 ETB ha-1 with acceptable MRR 4728% was achieved at 114 kg N ha-1 and 30 cm intra-row spacing. Therefore, 30 cm intra-row spacing with 114 kg N ha-1 could be recommended for hot pepper production in the Burie district.