Effects of biologicals on shallot yield and quality

Abstract

There are very few publications reporting the results of studies on the effects of biologicals on yields and quality of bulbaceous plants. In view of this, the purpose of this paper was to scientifically substantiate effects of biologicals containing bacterial strains of Pseudomonas aureofaciens B-111 (IBM B-7096) and Pseudomonas aureofaciens B-306 (IBM B-7097) as well as spores and mycelium of the fungus Trichoderma viride on the yield and qualityof shallot bulbs. To achieve the purpose, the following objectives were set: to investigate biometric parameters ofshallot plants depending on biological treatments, to determine the yield and to evaluate the impact of the biologicals on the biochemical composition of bulbs. The biologicals increased in the mean bulb weight by 6–15% andthe plant height by 9–15%. The total yield was raised by up to 16.2%. The share of marketable yield was increasedby 1.2–7.0%. There was a slight increase in the ascorbic acid content in bulbs (by 3–22%) and a slight decreasein the dry matter content (0.24–1.35%). A slight decrease in the total sugar content was observed (by 0.16–1.76%,depending on biologicals and shallot cultivars). Keywords: shallot, yield, quality, biologicals, effectiveness.