EFFECT OF INTRA-ROW SPACING AND CULTIVARS ON GROWTH AND YIELD OF SESAME VARIETIES UNDER RAIN-FED CONDITIONS IN NORTH KORDOFAN, SUDAN

الملخص

This experiment was conducted during the 2014-2016 seasons at El-Obeid Research Farm (sandy soil) and Jebel Kordofan (Gardud soil). The three varieties included: Elobeid 1, an early-maturing, white-seeded type with two branches; Promo, also early-maturing and white-seeded, with four to five branches; and the local variety Hirhrie, a late-maturing, brown-seeded type with more than six branches. The intra row spacing was 50, 40, and 30 cm with a fixed inter-row spacing of 50cm. The treatments were arranged in a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with four replications. The measurements include 50% flowering, stand at harvest, 1000 seed weight, number of branches and capsules, plant height seed yield kg/ha. Analysis of variance for individual and combined was performed using MSTAT-C statistical package. The result revealed that seasons and locations significantly affected most of the studied parameters; season with high rainfall was better than low rainfall, gardud soil location was better than the sandy soil in recording high values. Varietal differences significantly appeared in number of days to 50% flowering, plant stand, branch number, and 1000 seed weight, whereas the intra row spacing effect appeared only on 50% flowering, with plants under 50x50 cm flowering later than 50x40 cm and 50x30cm plants. The 50x30 cm spacing possessed a higher population stand than the others. Although the three varieties were significantly different in number of branches and 1000 seed weight, but not affected by the wide or narrow intra-row spacing, which makes the choice of 50x50 cm spacing more suitable and manageable for these varieties in sand and gardud soil of North Kordofan rain-fed conditions.