This two-season field experiment sprayed Indian mustard with borax (0.5% or 1.0%) with or without urea at flowering or at flowering and capsule formation. Combined borax and urea sprays at both stages gave the highest seed and stover boron, along with higher yield and oil quality.
Key numbers
- Initial hot-water-soluble soil boron: 0.45 mg/kg (Materials, p. 3).
- Seed boron: 16.17 mg/kg in the control (T1, NPK only) and 27.71 mg/kg with 1.0% borax plus 1.0% urea at flowering and capsule formation (T9) (Table 3, p. 7).
- Stover boron: 14.68 mg/kg (control) to 25.92 mg/kg (T9) (Table 3, p. 7).
Methods (brief)
Randomized block design with three replications over the 2020 to 2021 and 2021 to 2022 seasons on a sandy loam. Oven-dried (65 °C) seed and stover were digested in nitric and perchloric acids; the paper states boron was measured with an atomic absorption spectrophotometer (Varian AAS 240 FS). Initial soil boron was measured by the azomethine-H colorimetric method.
Evidence fitness
Supports the size of seed boron increases from foliar borax in an oilseed crop. It does not support typical market concentrations, human intake or health effects.
Limitations
Atomic absorption is not a common technique for boron and no boron quality control is described. Values in Table 3 are not labeled by season. Funded by Punjab Agricultural University, ICAR-Indian Institute of Soil Science and Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University.
Related evidence
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