Physiological Attributes of Cabbage (Brassica Oleracea) as Influenced by Different Sources of Nutrients under Eastern Himalayan Region Ranjit Chatterjee Department of Vegetable and Spice Crops, Uttar Banga Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Pundibari, Coochbehar-736 165, West Bengal, India e-mail: ranchat22@rediffmail.com A B S T R A C T The influence of integrated use of inorganic fertilizers, organic manures (farmyard manure and vermicompost) and Azotobacter and Phosphate Solubilizing Bacteria (PSB) containing biofertilizer on physiological attributes of cabbage was studied in a field experiment at UBKV, Pundibari, Cooch Behar, West Bengal, India during winter season of 2005-06 and 2006-07. The experiment was laid out in a randomized block design (RBD) with 14 different treatment combinations replicated thrice. Different physiological attributes viz chlorophyll content of leaves; leaf area indexes and dry matter accumulation as well as yield attributes were studied. The pooled results revealed that higher amount of organic manure and reduced levels of inorganic fertilizers not only influenced the physiological attributes significantly but also yield attributes and head yield of cabbage as compared to sole application of recommended inorganic fertilizers (150 : 80 : 75kg NPK/ ha). Vermicompost emerged as better organic nutrient source over farmyard manure. Inoculation with biofertilizer exerted more positive result over uninoculated treatments and benefits of biofertilizer application were more in presence of vermicompost as compared to farmyard manure. The desirable physiological traits such as higher chlorophyll content, larger leaf area index and greater dry mater content along with higher head weight and head yield were recorded for the plants grown with the application of 75% of recommended inorganic fertilizers along with vermicompost (5 tonnes/ ha) in presence of biofertilizer. Key words: Physiological attributes, Nutrient sources, Cabbage head yield Cabbage (Brassica Oleracea var. capitata L.) is the most widely cultivated cole crop in the world and esteemed for its vitamins, minerals and dietary fibers content of head. The head is a large apical bud surrounded by many wrapper leaves. The dry matter of head depends on the capacity of the plant to accumulate and translocate the photosynthates towards developing head. Chlorophyll content of leaves, leaf area index and dry matter contents are the important physiological traits that greatly imparts the vegetative growth, yield attributes and head yield of cabbage. Nutrient management practices plays significant role in modification and improvement of physiological attributes and subsequently head weight and yield. The head size is influenced directly by the availability of major nutrients to the plant and for satisfactory yield there must be adequate levels of plant nutrients (Wein and Wurr 1997). The incorporation of organic nutrients in the form of vermicompost, farmyard manure and biofertilizer is known to influence favorably the physico-chemical and biological properties of the soil thus resulting in enhanced uptake of nutrients from soil. Vermicompost contains nutrients in forms that are readily taken up by the plants such as nitrates, exchangeable phosphorus and soluble potassium, calcium, and magnesium (Edwards and Burrows 1988). The water soluble components of vermicompost such as humic acid, growth regulators, vitamins, micronutrients and beneficial microorganism increases the availability of plant nutrients, results in increased growth and higher yield (Atiyeh et al. 2002). Farmyard manure and biofertilizer also plays vital role as organic nutrient sources for sustainable soil health and crop growth. Enhancement of physiological traits with application of higher amount of organic manure and reduced level of inorganic nitrogen has been documented in okra (Paramasivan et al. 2005) and pea (Reddy et al. 1998). Thus, the present investigation was undertaken to study the impact of different source of nutrients and their combination on important physiological attributes and subsequently on yield attributes and head yield of cabbage. MATERIALS AND METHODS The field experiment was conducted during winter season (November to February) of 2005-06 and 2006- 07 at the Instructional Farm of UBKV, Pundibari, Coochbehar, West Bengal, India. The site is located at 89° 23′ 53′′ E longitude and 26°19′ 86′′ N latitude and at 43m above mean sea level. The soil was sandy loam (61%, 20% and 18% sand, silt and clay, respectively) in texture and slight acidic in reaction (pH 5.71). The initial soil organic carbon was 0.83% and available N, P and K contents were 154.28, 21.17 and 124.48kg/ ha, Research Journal of Agricultural Sciences 2010, 1(4): 318-321 318