EFFECT OF PLANT GROWTH REGULATORS ON GROWTH AND YIELD TRAITS OF RADISH (Raphanus sativus L.) Avinash Tomer, Pavitra Dev*, Jitendra Kumar, Akshya Kumar and Vinuj Kumar 1 Department of Horticulture, Chaudhary Charan Singh University, Meerut 250004 (U.P.) 1 Department of Horticulture, SVP University of Agri. & Tech., Modipuram, Meerut (U.P.) *Corresponding Author’s E-mail : pavitrahort@gmail.com ABSTRACT : The field experiment to study the effect of plant growth regulators on growth and yield parameters of radish (Raphanus sativus L.) was conducted during the year 2017-2018 at Horticulture Research farm, Department of Horticulture, CCS Univ. Campus, Meerut (U.P) India. There were nine treatments i.e. T 1 (GA 3 @ 50 ppm), T 2 (G 3 A @ 100 ppm), T 3 (IAA @ 50 ppm), T 4 (IAA @ 100 ppm), T 5 (NAA @ 50 ppm), T 6 (NAA @ 100 ppm), T 7 (MH @ 100 ppm), T 8 (MH @ 200 ppm) and T 9 (control). The findings of the present investigation clearly indicated that the foliar application of G 3 A @ 100 ppm gave significant effect to improve growth and yield parameters of radish viz., plant height (36.93 cm), number of leaves (25.79), leaf length (33.60 cm), root diameter (5.39 cm), weight of root (250.66 g) and yield (380.94 q/ha) as compared to other treatments. Hence, foliar application of G 3 A @ 100ppm may be suggested for getting maximum vegetative growth and yield of radish under Western Uttar Pradesh conditions. Keywords : Radish, GA 3 , IAA, NAA, MH, yield. Radish (Raphanus sativus L.; 2n =18), originated from Europe or Asia, is presently cultivated all over the world. Radish is considered as one of the most popular root crops of Rabi season and widely cultivated for its excellent nutritive and medicinal values. It is a popular vegetable in both tropical and temperate regions of the world. It is grown as annual crop for root production and biennial for seed production. In India, the area under radish is 209 thousand hectares with an annual production of 3061 thousand metric tonnes during the year 2017-18 (Anon, 2). Radish is grown for their young tender tuberous roots which are consumed either cooked or raw. It is a good source of vitamin and minerals. 100 g of edible part (root) of radish contains 94.4 % moisture, 3.4 g carbohydrates, 0.7 gm protein, 0.06 mg thiamine, 0.02 mg riboflavin, 15 mg vitamin C, 35 mg calcium and 0.04 mg iron (Dhariwal, 6). It has refreshing and diuretic properties. The leaves of radish are good source of protein which is extraction on a commercial scale. Radish seeds are good source of non-drying fatty oil suitable for soap making, illuminating and edible purposes. It is relished for its pungent flavour and is considered as appetizer. Plant bioregulators have proven as a good way to increase vegetable production without detritions in quality of produce and soil health. Plant growth regulators are known to control plants physiological and biochemical process. These include control of dormancy, organ size, crop development, flowering and fruit set, regulation of nutrients uptake from the soil (Ganpathi et al., 8; Nickell, 14). Growth regulators influence plant growth and development in a very low concentration while they inhibit at high concentrations. In the case of radish, the role of endogenous gibberellins in the regulation of stem elongation and flower formation been less studied. Various studies indicated that GA 3 is an important plant hormone to increase growth and yield attributing characters of plant. MATERIALS AND METHODS The field experiment was conducted at the Horticultural Research Farm, Department of Horticulture, Chaudhary Charan Singh University Campus, Meerut, (U.P) during the winter season. Geographically, Meerut is located between 29.01° N latitude and 77.43°E longitude at an elevation of 222 meters above the mean sea level. The maximum and minimum temperature was ranging between 22.30°C and 13.12°C, respectively during the course of experimental study. There was about 23.4 mm rainfall HortFlora Research Spectrum www.hortflorajournal.com Vol. 8, Issue 1 & 2; 29-32 (March & June 2019) ISSN: 2250-2823 NAAS Rating : 3.78 Article’s History Received: 03-2-2019 Accepted: 13-3-2019