EFFECT OF FOLIAR SPRAY OF SOLUBLE SILICIC ACID ON GROWTH AND YIELD PARAMETERS OF WETLAND RICE IN HILLY AND COASTAL ZONE SOILS OF KARNATAKA, SOUTH INDIA

Field experiments were conducted to evaluate the effect of foliar spray of soluble silicic acid on growth and yield parameters of wetland rice. The results revealed a significant effect on achieving higher grain and straw yield with foliar silicic acid over control. Foliar spray of silicic acid at 2 and 4 ml L(-1) increased the grain and straw yield and application of 8 ml L(-1) decreased the yield. Foliar spray of silicic acid at 4 ml L(-1) along with half dose of recommended pesticide effectively increased the yields over all other treatments. The content and uptake of silicon in grain and straw was recorded higher with the foliar spray of silicic acid over control. This investigation concludes that application of silicic acid at 4 ml L(-1) along with half dose of recommended pesticide as foliar spray increased the grain and straw yield, besides Si content and its uptake over control.