~ 799 ~ International Journal of Chemical Studies 2020; 8(3): 799-802 P-ISSN: 2349–8528 E-ISSN: 2321–4902 www.chemijournal.com IJCS 2020; 8(3): 799-802 © 2020 IJCS Received: 12-03-2020 Accepted: 13-04-2020 Amalesh Ghosh a) Palli Siksha Bhavana, Visva- Bharati, Sriniketan, Birbhum, West Bengal, India b) Assistant Director of Agriculture, Department of Agriculture, Govt. of West Bengal, , India Tanmoy Shankar Assistant Professor, Department of Agronomy, M.S. Swaminathan School of Agriculture, Centurion University Technology and Management, Paralakhemundi, Odisha, India GC Malik Palli Siksha Bhavana, Visva- Bharati, Sriniketan, Birbhum, West Bengal, India Mahua Banerjee Palli Siksha Bhavana, Visva- Bharati, Sriniketan, Birbhum, West Bengal, India A Ghosh Central Salt and Marine Chemicals Research Institute, Bhavnagar, Gujarat, India Corresponding Author: Amalesh Ghosh a) Palli Siksha Bhavana, Visva- Bharati, Sriniketan, Birbhum, West Bengal, India b) Assistant Director of Agriculture, Department of Agriculture, Govt. of West Bengal, India Effect of seaweed extracts on the growth, yield and nutrient uptake of black gram ( Vigna mungo L.) in the red and lateritic belt of West Bengal Amalesh Ghosh, Tanmoy Shankar, GC Malik, Mahua Banerjee and A Ghosh DOI: https://doi.org/10.22271/chemi.2020.v8.i3j.9300 Abstract A field experiment was conducted at the Agricultural farm of Visva-Bharati University, Birbhum, West Bengal during Pre-kharif (Summar) season of 2012, to study the effect of foliar spray of seaweed extracts (prepared from Kappaphycus alvarezii & Gracilaria crassa) on the growth and productivity of black gram. The foliar spray was applied thrice at different concentrations (0, 5.0, 7.5, 10.0 and 15.0% v/v) of seaweed extracts. Foliar applications of seaweed extracts significantly enhanced the growth and yield attributes. The highest grain yield was recorded with applications of 15% Kappaphykus + recommended dose of fertilizer which at par wth 15% Gracilaria extracts + RDF resulting in an enhanced by 51 and 44% grain yield, respectively compared to the water applied plots. The highest straw yield was also achieved with the application of 15% seaweed extracts. The nutrient uptake (N, P and K) which influenced due to the application was also with seaweed extract. Keywords: Seaweed extracts, Kappaphycus (K), Gracilaria (G), recommended dose of fertilizer, black gram Introduction Seaweeds are one of the important marine living resources which are renewable. Several species of green, brown and red algae are used as manure in coastal areas throughout the world. They are rich in potassium but poor in nitrogen and phosphorus. Seaweed concentrates are beneficial effects on plants as they contain growth promoting hormones (IAA, IBA and Cytokinins) and different trace elements, vitamins and amino acids (Khan et al. 2009) [4] . A wide range of beneficial effects have been reported from the use of liquid seaweed extracts, including increased crop yields, increased uptake of inorganic constituents from the soil, more resistance to stress conditions. Seaweed species were reported to be potential sources of fertilizer. Integrated use of sea weed liquid fertilizer in combination with the chemical fertilizer and their proper management for better growth and yield is very essential. Keeping, these facts in perspective, the present investigation were taken up. Sea weeds are marine algae, saltwater dwelling, and simple organisms that fall into the rather. A positive effect of several species of algae on the growth, development and, consequently yields of field crops have been proved so far. Seaweed liquid extract could serve as an alternative bio-fertilizer as is eco- friendly, and substantial economic with environmental benefits. So the main objective of this study is to evaluate the application of different concentrations of seaweed extracts in enhancing the growth, yield and nutrient uptake of black gram (Vigna mungo L.) grown in fields, in the red lateritic belt. Materials and methods A field experiment was conducted during pre-kharif season of 2012 at the agricultural farm, Palli Siksha Bhavana, Visva-Bharati, Sriniketan, Birbhum, West Bengal. The farm is situated at 23 0 39' N latitude and 87 0 42' E longitude with an average altitude of 58.90 m above mean sea level (MSL) under sub-humid, semi arid region of West Bengal. The soil of the experimental site was sandy loam in texture with pH 5.76, organic carbon 0.39%, available nitrogen 146.20 kg/ha, available phosphorus 31.1 kg/ha and available potassium 139.1 kg/ha.