Interaction Effects of 6-Benzylaminopurine, Indole-3-Butyricacid andUrea Fertilizer to Enhance Tillering Potential of Sugarcane (Sacharumofficinarum L) Plants

Even though tillering is a key yield attribute in sugarcane and determined by the genetic base of the genotype, it can also be affected by applications of plant growth regulators, phenolic compounds, nitrogen fertilizers and other agronomic management practices. With this view, the effects of BAP, IBA and Urea fertilizer on two sugarcane genotypes with early maturing and high sugar content but shy in tillering followed by few millable stalk populations and hence low in cane and sugar yield was investigated. Accordingly, three levels of BAP (0, 0.03 & 0.06 mg/l), three levels of IBA (0, 0.02 and 0.03 mg/l) and four levels of Urea (0, 300, 450 and 700 kg/ha) with two sugarcane genotypes in a completely randomized block design with 3*3*4*2 factorial treatment combination arrangements was tested. Data on the number of tillers per shoot, average shoot length (cm) and number of active leaves per shoot were collected after 60 days of planting on Luvisol of Metahara Sugar Estate. Analysis of variance proved that the interaction effects of BAP* IBA*Urea*Sugarcane genotypes was highly significant (P<0.001) on the response variables tested. In sugarcane genotype C132-81, the optimum number of tillers per shoot (11.43) was obtained at 0.03 mg/l IBA, 0.06 mg/l BAP and 300 kg/l Urea fertilizer with 30.47 cm average shoot length and 8.27 active leaves per shoot while C86-56 produced 10.97 tillers per shoot with 33 cm average shoot length and 6.57 active leaves per shoot on the same treatment combination. From this result, it can be deduced that, it is possible to double the key yield attribute; number of tillers per shoot in shy tillering sugarcane genotypes that can in turn increase cane and sugar yield.