Abstract:
Due to its ease of production, nutritional value, good taste, and short durational crop, carrot
(Daucus carota L.) is an important root vegetable in the world in general and in Ethiopia in
particular. However, its yield is constrained by different yield-limiting factors including low
soil fertility, type of fertilizer used and fault of its application. Most carrot growers use
inorganic fertilizers with a sub-optimal amount of fertilizers containing only N and P
nutrients to improve carrot yields by considering K is sufficient in the soils; hence, there is no
information about crop and location-specific rate of K applications. Thus, a field experiment
was carried out during the main cropping season of 2020 with the main objectives of
evaluating the effect potassium-containing amendments sourced from (KCl) and [cattle dung cake ash (CDA)] at different rates on growth, yield, and quality of carrot. The treatments
consisted of factorial combinations of four levels of KCl (0, 50, 100, and 150 kg ha -1
) and
four levels of CDA (0, 10, 20, 30 t ha -1
) arranged in a Randomized Complete Block Design
(RCBD) with three replications. The results indicated that the combined application of 50 kg
ha -1
of KCl and 10 t ha -1
of CDA resulted in the highest plant height (34.55cm), leaf number
(13.57), root yield (22.15 t ha -1
), and the longest root length (11.44 cm) compared to the
control. The combined use of KCl and CDA were non-significant (P>0.05) for marketable
root number, marketable root yield, and total soluble solid (TSS). However, application of
CDA provided significant (P<0.05) results on these parameters. Accordingly, the highest
marketable root number (44.67), marketable root yield (1.36 kg), and TSS of (8.22) were
recorded due to the application of CDA at a rate of 10 t ha-1
. Furthermore, the combined
application of 50 kg ha -1
of KCl and 10 t ha -1
of CDA had resulted the highest net benefit
(181,540.00 Ethiopian Birr ha -1
) with a marginal rate of return (MRR) of 958.824%. Thus,
the study concluded that the combined use of KCl and CDA at a rate of 50 kg ha -1
and 10 t
ha -1
, respectively, could be more productive and economically advantageous. However,
additional studies need to be conducted in the future at different locations, and seasons. In
addition, different source of inorganic potassium such as K2 SO4, K NO3, etc. should be tested
to come up with best recommendations.
