Effect of varieties and fertilizer practices on yield and quality of Capsicum chinense Jacq under protected culture

Capsicum chinense Jacq, belongs to the family Solanaceae and is native to Central and South America. It has been widely cultivated in Sri Lanka as a commercial crop. This study was undertaken to identify the most suitable combination of fertilizer and C. chinense variety to enhance growth, yield, and fruit quality, aiming to optimize C. chinense production, reduce input wastage, and increase profitability for farmers. This experiment was conducted at the Regional Agriculture Research and Development Center, Bandarawela using a Completely Randomized Block Design with a two-factor factorial arrangement, four replications, each with six plants. Two factors were fertilizers: Albert’s solution and Kodimix® and five C. chinense varieties: Piquante, Hot dragon, Dark green, Light green, and M1HP1. Ten treatment combinations were tested, pairing each variety with one of the two fertilizers for growth yield and quality parameters. The results indicated that the treatment effect was statistically significant (P<0.05) for most measured parameters. The results of the present investigation indicated that, among the treatments, Piquante × Kodimix® yielded the highest per-plant yield (0.92 kg) and was therefore considered the best treatment.