International Journal of Horticulture, 2025, Vol.15, No.4, 143-161 http://hortherbpublisher.com/index.php/ijh 151 Figure 6 Interaction between varieties and growing media on shoot length 3.3 Effect of growing media on stem diameter Table 3 presents the influence of different growth media mixtures and Capsicum varieties on stem diameter. The analysis of variance showed highly significant differences (p < 0.001) between the varieties at 25, 30, and 35 days after sowing (DAS), and a significant difference (p < 0.05) at 40 DAS. Among the varieties, California Wonder (V2) consistently outperformed Sagar (V1) in stem thickness, attaining the highest diameter of 0.24 cm at 40 DAS, compared to 0.23 cm in V1. On average, V2 had a stem diameter of 0.20 cm, while V1 had 0.19 cm. Growth media composition had a profound and highly significant effect (p < 0.001) on stem diameter throughout the seedling stage. The maximum stem thickness (0.28 cm) was observed in M5 (Soil + Cocopeat + FYM + Vermicompost in 1:1:1:1 ratio) at 40 DAS, followed by M4 (Soil + Vermicompost) with 0.26 cm, and M3 (Soil + FYM) with 0.25 cm. The smallest stem diameter (0.11 cm) was recorded in the control treatment (M1: Soil alone) at 25 DAS. These results underscore the superior role of organic-enriched substrates in promoting stem robustness during early growth stages. While the variety × media interaction effect was not statistically significant at most stages, Figure 7 depicts discernible trends. California Wonder (V2) again showed greater responsiveness to organic amendments, particularly in M5, where it achieved a stem diameter of 0.28 cm, closely followed by M4 and M3. In contrast, Sagar (V1) showed consistently thinner stems under all media, though it also responded positively to M5, reaching 0.29 cm, its highest recorded value. These trends in Figure 7 illustrate the cumulative benefit of genetic potential and media quality in enhancing stem thickness. 3.4 Effect of different growing media on the number of leaves Table 4 presents the effect of growth media mixtures with capsicum varieties on the number of leaves, while Figure 8 illustrates the interaction effects between varieties and media types across four developmental stages (25, 30, 35, and 40 days after sowing DAS). The analysis showed no significant difference between the two varieties (V1: Sagar Hybrid F1, V2: California Wonder) in the number of leaves at any growth stage, with mean values ranging from 0.53 to 3.12 leaves per plant. This indicates that genetic variation alone did not significantly influence leaf emergence during early growth stages under the experimental conditions. In contrast, a highly significant effect (p < 0.001) was observed among the different growing media treatments at all growth stages. At 40 DAS, the highest number of leaves (5.13) was recorded in the treatment M5 (Soil + Cocopeat + FYM + Vermicompost at 1:1:1:1), followed by M4 (Soil + Vermicompost, 4.10) and M3 (Soil + FYM, 3.70). These enriched organic mixtures clearly promoted superior leaf development compared to the control (M1: soil alone), where seedlings failed to develop leaves at 25 and 30 DAS and only produced 0.73 leaves on average by 40 DAS.
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