Influence of Number of Suckers in Ratoon Crop on Yield and Quality of Malbhog (AAB) Banana

An experiment was carried out at instructional cum experimental farm, Department of Horticulture, Biswanath College of Agriculture, Assam Agricultural University, Biswanath Chariali to study the effect of number of suckers per hill on yield and quality of banana cv. Malbhog (AAB) in ratoon crop by maintaining different numbers of suckers per hill as-T1 (one sucker per hill), T2 (two suckers per hill), T3 (three suckers per hill), and T4 (four suckers per hill). Plants for each treatment were planted in two spacing as S1 (2.1 m x 2.1 m) and S2 (2.5 m x 2.5 m). One treatment with recommended package of practice (one sucker retain with mother plant at shooting) was also included in the experiment as control. The treatment combinations were laid out in factorial Randomized Block Design with three replications. Finger length (15.22 cm), finger girth (12.05 cm), finger volume (84.44cc) and finger weight (83.65 g), number of fingers (92.75/bunch), hands (7.27/bunch), bunch weight (9.41 kg/bunch and yield (15.05 t/ha), were highest in S2T1 (2 suckers per hill in 2.5 m x 2.5 m spacing). Lowest duration from harvesting of first crop to harvesting of first ratoon crop (68.50 days) observed in S2T1. Yield of banana was significantly lower in wider spacing of 2.5 m x 2.5 m (S2) than S1 (2.1 m x 2.1 m). There was no significant effect on quality attributing parameters of fingers.