The Effects of Blended N₁₀P₁₈K₂₄ fertilizer on agronomic performance tobacco (<i>Nicotiana tabacum</i> L) plant and quality of flue cured tobacco leaf

Abstract

A study was conducted in sandy soil to evaluate the performance of blended N₁₀P₁₈K₂₄ followed by CAN 27%N fertilizer on tobacco yield and quality. The experiment was laid in a randomized complete block design (RCBD) during the 2021-22 cropping season at Tumbi, Tabora. The treatments had plot size of 2.5 m by 3.6 m and were unfertilized plot (T1), fertilized with blended YARA N₁₀P₁₈K₂₄ at 7 days after transplanting (DAT) followed by CAN 27% at 21 DAT tobacco seedlings (T2), fertilized with standard YARA N₁₀P₁₈K₂₄ at 7 DAT seedlings, followed by CAN 27% on the 21 DAT tobacco seedlings (T4) and fertilized with blended YARA N₁₀P₁₈K₂₄ at 21 DAT tobacco seedlings, followed by CAN 27% on the 35 DAT tobacco seedlings (T3). The four treatments were replicated three times. The results showed that application of basal blended NPK fertilizer at 21 DAT and top dressed with CAN 27%N at 35 DAT was superior and yielded higher leaf dry weight 2144.18 ± 77.16 kg/ha than application of basal blended NPK fertilizer at 7 DAT followed by top dressing at 21 DAT which had 1665.07 ± 217.17 kg/ha. Both blended treatments yielded more leaf dry weight than the treatment applied with basal standard compound NPK at 7 DAT followed by top dressing fertilizer CAN 27%N at 21 DAT (1501.94 ± 144.11 kg/ ha). Nevertheless, the treatments applied with basal NPK and topdressing CAN 27%N at 7 and 21 DAT respectively, did not differ significantly with the tobacco dry leaf yield. Therefore, the current study recommends the application of the blended N₁₀P₁₈K₂₄ basal fertilization at 21 DAT, followed by CAN 27% top-dressing fertilizer at 35 DAT as it yielded significantly (P≤0.001) dry leaf of 2144.18 ± 77.16 kg/ha.