Synergistic Effects of Seed Inoculation with Piriformospora indica and Foliar Hormonal Application on Early Flowering in Rice Bean (Vigna umbellata) Variety Surabhi

Abstract

This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of seed inoculation with Piriformospora indica and various foliar hormonal treatments in promoting early flowering in fodder rice bean (Vigna umbellata Thunb.), variety Surabhi, conducted at the College of Agriculture, Vellayani. The experiment was laid out in randomized block design with ten treatments and three replications. The plot size of  3 m2  was followed in the field experiment. The experiment assessed the impact of different treatments on flowering and other biometric traits in the leguminous crop. The treatments included untreated control, seed inoculation with Piriformospora indica before sowing and foliar applications of salicylic acid (100 ppm,150 ppm), GA₃ (200 ppm,300 ppm), Paclobutrazol (10 ppm,20 ppm) and KNO₃ (1%,1.5%) at 30 days after sowing (DAS). The results revealed that significant differences were observed among treatments for all thirteen biometric traits measured. Early flowering was recorded in plants treated with salicylic acid @ 100 ppm(65.35 days), followed by GA₃ @ 300 ppm (67.72 days), salicylic acid @ 150 ppm (67.81 days), and Paclobutrazol @ 10 ppm (69.87 days), whereas the control flowered  last (80.96 days. The findings suggest that the application of specific concentrations of growth regulators and seed inoculation with P.indica can effectively reduce the time to flowering, enhancing the potential for improved seed production in fodder rice bean.