Effect of Gibberrellic Acid on Growth and Fruit Yield of Greenhouse-Grown Cape Gooseberry

Cape gooseberry is wildly grown in most parts of the tropics. A study was conducted to establish the optimal concentration and the critical stage of application of gibberellic acid (GA₃) in promoting plant growth and fruit yield in Cape gooseberry. GA3 concentration of 100 ppm, and 12.5 pp, were applied at one week after transplanting, at flower initiation, and at fruiting stages, respectively. A 5 x 3 x 3 factorial experiment was designed and data collected on number of plant branches, plant height, and number of the fruits on a weekly basis for the whole economic life of the plant. Data was then analysed by GenStat statistical program where least significant difference (LSD) was used to separate and compare the means at 5% level of significance. Application of GA3 increased branching, flower bud formation and fruiting. The higher the concentration the greater was the growth and yield. However, applying GA3 at 100ppm one week after transplanting the seedlings resulted in plants producing significantly largest number of fruits (303 fruits per plant), number of branches (20 branches per plant), and plant height (112.4 cm).