Fodder productivity and quality assessment of bajra napier hybrid varieties under different nitrogen levels

Abstract

An experiment was conducted at the forage research farm of Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana to evaluate the response of bajra napier hybrid varieties under different levels of nitrogen during two kharif seasons of 2018 and 2019. During both the years under study, the variety PBN 342 gave the highest green fodder and dry matter yields over the existing recommended varieties. The variety PBN 342 also maintained its superiority in quality over the other two varieties. Among the nitrogen levels, the application of highest level of nitrogen i.e., 120 kg N/ha/cut led to highest green fodder and dry matter yield but these values were statistically similar to the yield obtained with 75 kg N/ha/cut. The mortality of crop stumps decreased with increase in nitrogen dose. Nitrogen application also improved the quality of bajra napier hybrid.