Effect of biofertilizers and inorganic fertilizers on green and dry foliage, oil content and oil yield of patchouli (Pogostemon cablin benth)

Effect of biofertilizers and inorganic fertilizers on the yield parameters of patchouli (Pogostemon cablin Benth) was studied at the medicinal and aromatic crops section of the Department of Forest Product and Utilization, College of Forestry, Dr Balasaheb Sawant Konkan Krishi Vidyapeeth, Dapoli, Maharashtra during 2021-2022 in RBD with ten treatments and three replications comprising a combination of gross recommended dose of fertilizers (GRDF), Konkan Annapurna briquettes (KAB), phosphate solubilising bacteria (PSB), vesicular arbusculuar mycorrhiza (VAM) and Azotobacter and the observations on the dry foliage, green foliage, oil content and oil yield were recorded. In the first harvest (120 DAP), the maximum green foliage was recorded in T₁₀ (100% GRDF + PSB 10 g/plant + VAM 20 g/plant + Azotobacter 10 g/plant) (8.52 tonnes/ha), T₉ (100% GRDF + Azotobacter 10 g/plant) (8.03 tonnes/ha), T₈ (100% GRDF + VAM 20 g/plant) (7.88 tonnes/ha) and T₆ [6 KAB per plant (NPK 204:84:36 kg/ha)] (7.72 tonnes/ha) and in the second harvest (210 DAP) in T₁₀ (5.42 tonnes/ha), T₉ (5.16 tonnes/ha) and T₈ (5.00 tonnes/ha). In the first harvest, dry foliage per plant was maximum in T₁₀ (68.81 g), T₉ (68.27 g), T₈ (66.01 g) and T₇ (100% GRDF + PSB 10 g/plant) (65.04 g) and in the second harvest, in T₁₀ (38.55 g) and T₉ (38.21 g). The maximum oil content in the first harvest (2.63%) and (2.53%) was obtained in T₁₀ and T₆ respectively and in the second harvest, in T₁₀ (2.47%), T₆ (2.37%), T₉ (2.13%), T₅ [4 KAB per plant (NPK 136:56:24 kg/ha)] (2.00%) and T₈ (2.00%). Maximum oil yield (50.23, 26.43 and 76.66 kg/ha) was obtained in T₁₀ in the first and second harvest and cumulative for two harvests respectively.