Performance of Terrestrial Water Spinach (Ipomoea reptans) through Biofortification under Different Mode and Source of Iron Nutrition

Micronutrient malnutrition is a major health problem in India. Indian children and women suffer from anemia, deficiency of iron which creates an adverse effect on health. One of the main reasons for such situation is lack of availability of iron rich food. In such circumstances, it's essential to enhance the availability of iron rich food in India. Thus the field experiment was laid out in a split plot design with nine treatments and three replications during summer season of 2016 and 2017 at Instructional Farm, Faculty of Horticulture, Uttar Banga Krishi Viswavidyalaya, to find out the most viable mode and source of iron fertilizer for growth, yield and iron accumulation in Ipomoea reptans. For this purpose, three source of Fe solutions (Fe-EDTA, FeSO4. 7H2O and Fe2 (SO4)3 were applied in three different modes, i.e., 100% recommended dose through soil application, 100% recommended dose through foliar spray at 4 weeks after sowing and 50% of recommended dose through soil application + 50% recommended dose through foliar at 4 weeks after sowing. It was noticed that growth and yield parameters increased with the treatment combination of FeSO4. 7H2O (containing 16% iron) as 100% of recommended dose through foliar spray (0.5 g/ L of water) at 4 weeks after sowing, secondly the iron content of plant (mg/100g) was found maximum with the treatment combination of FeSO4. 7H2O (containing 16% iron) as 50% of recommended dose through soil application + 50% recommended dose through foliar spray at 4 weeks after sowing. Treatment combination FeSO4. 7H2O (containing 16% iron) as 100% of recommended dose through foliar spray produced maximum yield. Application of FeSO4. 7H2O as 50% of recommended dose through soil application + 50% recommended dose through foliar at 4 weeks after sowing can also be suggested.