International Journal of Horticulture, 2025, Vol.15, No.4, 143-161 http://hortherbpublisher.com/index.php/ijh 154 Figure 8 Interactions between varieties and growing media on leaf number 3.5 Effect of growing media on root length and leaf area The findings from Table 5, supported by the interaction plots in Figure 9 and Figure 10, reveal that both capsicum variety and growing media significantly affected root length and leaf area 40 days after sowing, although the interaction effect was statistically non-significant for both traits (p > 0.05). Among the varieties, California Wonder (V2) recorded significantly greater root length (4.36 cm) compared to Sagar Hybrid F1 (V1) (3.72 cm), while for leaf area, although no significant difference was detected, California Wonder showed a numerically higher mean value (4.28 cm2) than Sagar Hybrid F1 (3.33 cm2). The media treatment Soil + Cocopeat + FYM + Vermicompost (M5) significantly outperformed all others, resulting in the longest roots (5.70 cm) and largest leaf area (9.75 cm2), followed by Soil + FYM (M4) and Soil + Cocopeat + FYM (M3). The poorest growth was seen in the Control (M1) and Soil + Cocopeat (M2), both of which had notably lower values for root length and leaf area. As shown in Figure 9, California Wonder showed a sharp increase in root length under enriched media (especially M5), peaking above 6 cm, while Sagar Hybrid F1 also improved with enrichment but to a lesser extent. Similarly, in Figure 10, both varieties had the lowest leaf areas under M1 and M2, while the highest was recorded for California Wonder under M5, exceeding 10 cm2, compared to Sagar Hybrid F1’s 8.78 cm2 under the same treatment. These trends suggest that while varietal differences exist, growing media composition has a much stronger influence, particularly when supplemented with organic amendments like FYM and vermicompost. Although the varietal × media interaction was not statistically significant, the graphical patterns confirm that California Wonder responds more positively to enriched conditions, especially in terms of root elongation and canopy development, emphasizing the importance of integrated organic media for robust seedling establishment. 3.6 Effect of different growing media on mass of seedlings The results presented in Table 6 and illustrated in Figure 11 and Figure 12 demonstrate that both the variety and growing media treatments significantly influenced the fresh weight and dry weight of capsicum seedlings, although their interaction effect was statistically non-significant. Among the varieties, California Wonder (V2) recorded a higher mean fresh weight (0.56 g) and dry weight (0.06 g) compared to Sagar Hybrid F1 (V1), which had 0.47 g fresh weight and 0.04 g dry weight, with significant varietal differences observed at the 5% level for both parameters. Regarding media treatments, the Soil + Cocopeat + FYM + Vermicompost (M5) treatment resulted in the highest values for both fresh weight (1.13 g) and dry weight (0.12 g), followed by Soil + FYM (M4) and Soil + Cocopeat + FYM (M3), which produced moderate values. In contrast, control (M1) and Soil + Cocopeat (M2) had the lowest values for both traits.
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