Evaluating the effect of coated DAP (Diammonium phosphate) in sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum L.)

A field experiment was conducted to study the efficiency of coated DAP in sugarcane crop at M/s Sakthi Sugars Ltd., experimental farm, Appakudal, Erode district with 12 treatments comprising coated and uncoated DAP applications at three levels of P (100, 80 and 60 % of recommended P for sugarcane) with three replications. The design adopted was Randomized Block Design The results indicated that the treatment receiving coated DAP at 80 per cent of recommended P registered higher cane yield when compared with treatment receiving uncoated DAP at 100 per cent of recommended P. Among the sources of P, the treatments receiving coated DAP with nimin coated urea maintained their superiority in recording higher available N, P and K at post harvest stage followed by the treatments receiving coated DAP and uncoated DAP. However, with respect to available phosphorus at post-harvest stage, a marked increase in the available P status of the soil with the increasing levels of P as coated DAP was noticed.