This two-season field experiment sprayed sesame with borax solutions at 20, 30 and 40 mg/L of boron at flowering, or at flowering and capsule formation, and compared yield, boron uptake and oil quality with water-sprayed and untreated plots. Boron sprays raised seed yield and seed and stover boron. The soil was low in available boron at the start.
Key numbers
- Initial available soil boron: 0.48 mg/kg (Table 1, p. 3).
- Seed boron, two-year mean: 22.48 mg/kg in untreated control (T1) and 31.00 mg/kg with 40 mg/L boron sprayed at flowering and capsule formation (T9) (Table A1, p. 11).
- Stover boron, two-year mean: 30.90 mg/kg (control) to 42.63 mg/kg (T9) (Table A1, p. 11).
- Maximum increases reported: seed yield 26.75%, seed boron uptake 64.08% and stover boron uptake 69.25% (Abstract).
Methods (brief)
Randomized block design with three replications in the 2019 and 2020 kharif seasons; borax (11.3% boron) was the foliar boron source. Washed, oven-dried (60 °C) and ground seed and stover were dry-ashed at 450 to 500 °C, taken up in hydrochloric acid, and boron was measured by the azomethine-H spectrophotometric method.
Evidence fitness
Supports the magnitude of seed boron increase achievable by foliar borax on low-boron soil. It does not support typical market sesame concentrations, human intake or health effects.
Limitations
One variety, one location; concentrations are on an oven-dry basis. Agronomic framing treats boron as a nutrient to be raised. Funded by Punjab Agricultural University and Taif University; no conflicts declared.
Related evidence
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