Effect of nitrogen fertilizer on the growth of mungbean [Vigna radiata (L.) Wilczek] grown in Quetta

The objective of the study was to evaluate the growth respose of mungbean [vigna radiata (l.) wilczek] cultivars subjected to different levels of applied n fertilizer. to achieve the aim,an experiment conducted in the experimental field of agricultural research institute (ari),quetta. the soil of the study area was basic in reaction,salt free,medium textured having low organic matter & total n contents. four different cultivars of mungbean viz.,nm-92,nm-98,m-1,and ncm-209 grown in kharif season for two consecutive years i.e.,2007 and 2008. six different levels of n fertilizer applied @ zero,20,40,60,80 and 100 kg ha-1. while,a constant dose of p2o5 and k2o also applied to each n level (except control,zero). urea fertilizer used as a source of n,while tsp and sop as sources of p & k,respectively. the plot size kept as 2.40m2 (4x4x0.15),and arranged in a randomized complete block design (rcbd). results showed that different fertilizer levels did significantly (p<0.05) influenced most of the growth attributes of the mungbean. maximum days to flowering (48.25) and number of branches plant-1 (3.83) recorded for plants subjected to highest dose of applied n fertilizer viz.,100 kg ha-1. similar responses toward added n fertilizer also noted for various cultivars of mungbean. maximum days to flowering (47.72) and number of leaves plant-1 (5.86) recorded for ncm-209. whereas,the maximum plant height (38.52 cm) number of branches plant-1 (3.72) obtained for mungbean cultivar m-1. the correlation coefficient (r) studies exibited that plant height (0.593),number of leaves plant-1 (r=0.325),number of branches plant-1 (r=0.187) and leaf area (r=0.342) significantly (p<0.05) and positively correlated with their grain yield (kg ha-1). however,days to 50% flowering (r=-0.265) are also significantly but negatively associated with their grain yield (kg ha-1). thus based on correlation studies it could revealed that cultivars under cultivation displayed a wide range of variation for most of the mentioned growth traits and could be exploited in breeding programme to enrich the mungbean genetic treasure.