PJB-2013-289
AMELIORATION OF ADVERSE EFFECTS OF SIMULATED ACID RAIN (SAR) ON GROWTH AND YIELD ATTRIBUTES OF SUNFLOWER (HELIANTHUS ANNUUS L.) BY GROWTH TONICS
NOREEN KHALID*, MUMTAZ HUSSAIN AND MUHAMMAD AQEEL
Abstract
A pot experiment was conducted to mimic the adverse effects of air pollution in the form of simulated acid rain (SAR) on morphological and yield attributes of two sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) hybrids viz. FH-385 and FH-37 and their amelioration with the application of two growth tonics (Fashion and Micron-T i.e., macro & micronutrients). The experiment was performed in the net house of Old Botanical Garden, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, in a Completely Randomized design with four replicates. Simulated acid rain (containing HNO3 at pH 3) alone and in combination with foliar spray of Fashion or Micron-T were applied 20 days after seed germination. Acid rain treatment remarkably reduced growth and yield in both hybrids while the application of Fashion excelled Micron-T in ameliorating the toxic effects of acid rain. A comparison between sunflower hybrids indicated FH-37 to be more tolerant to SAR as compared to FH-385. Based on these findings it may be recommended that growth tonics may ameliorate the toxic effects of SAR. There is need for further investigation to improve agricultural produce using such growth tonics.
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