Effect of Seedling Transplanting Method on Fiber Yield and Yield Attributes of BJRI Tossa Jute (Corchorus olitorius) as Influenced by Plant Spacing

Abstract

An experiment was conducted at the Jute Research Regional Station, Kishoreganj, Bangladesh, during 2020 to evaluate the effects of seedling transplanting and plant spacing on fiber yield, yield attributes, and economic performance of BJRI tossa jute (Corchorus olitorius L.) variety O-9897. The study was laid out in a randomized complete block design with three replications. Treatments comprised seedling transplanting with weeding and without weeding combined with six spacing arrangements (20 cm × 7.5 cm, 20 cm × 10 cm, 25 cm × 7.5 cm, 25 cm × 10 cm, 30 cm × 7.5 cm, and 30 cm × 10 cm). A direct-seeded crop with recommended fertilizer and weeding served as the control. Results showed that plant population, plant height, fiber yield, and stick yield were significantly affected by transplanting and spacing, while base diameter and bark thickness remained unaffected. The highest fiber yield (3.27 t ha⁻¹) was obtained from seedling transplanting without weeding at 20 cm × 7.5 cm spacing, representing a 45% increase over the control. This treatment also recorded the highest benefit–cost ratio (3.13) and a substantial reduction in production cost compared with the conventional method. Multivariate analyses revealed that fiber yield was positively associated with plant population and stem robustness rather than plant height alone. The study concludes that seedling transplanting without weeding under closer spacing is an agronomically efficient and economically viable technique for improving tossa jute productivity under Bangladesh conditions.