EFFECT OF CONTAINER TYPE AND GROWING MEDIA ON GERMINATION AND SEEDLING GROWTH PARAMETERS AT NURSERY STAGE IN ALLEPO PINE IN KASHMIR VALLEY, INDIA

The present investigation on Allepo pine indicated that container type exert significant influence on germination and seedling growth parameters. Root trainer 300 cc (C3) raised seedlings exhibited maximum plant per cent (70.00), plant height (16.27 cm), collar diameter (1.90 mm), root dry weight (0.21 g), shoot dry weight (0.42 g), shoot root ratio (2.34) and total fresh biomass (1.37 g) per seedling variation in seedling growth parameters in different containers can be attributed to the size and type of the containers. The minimum values in all these parameters were observed in seedlings raised in polytubling of size 150 cc (C4). Besides other seedling growth parameters, the poly bag of different size raised seedlings have shown slightly lower values for plant height, collar diameter and total biomass. Among growing media, forest soil: sand: FYM: dalweed (1:2:3:3) resulted in significantly highest plant per cent (67.97), plant height (15.03 cm), collar diameter (1.93 mm), dry root weight (0.22 g), dry shoot weight (0.44 g), shoot root ratio (2.47) and total fresh biomass (1.42 g) in the seedlings under nursery condition. The study also reveal that growing medium exert significant influence on germination and seedling growth parameters in Allepo pine. The data in Table 01 to 03 indicated significantly high germination (67.97%) and seedling growth parameters like plant height (15.03 cm), collar diameter (1.93 mm), dry root weight (0.22 g), dry shoot weight (0.44 g), shoot root ratio (2.47), and total fresh biomass (1.42 g) when seedlings were raised in growing medium of soil: sand: FYM: dalweed in the ratio of 1:2:3:3 (M3). The better growth of seedlings raised in potting mixture M3 may be attributed to the fact that more nitrogen from the FYM as a component of potting mixture having the better decomposition rate leading to the narrower C:N ratio. .