Effect of pre-harvest treatments on growth and yield characters of multiplier onion (Allium cepa L. var. aggregatum Don.) cv. CO-5

Abstract

Onion (Allium cepa L.) belongs to the family Alliaceae,
is a bulb crop and one of the important vegetables of the
world. India stands first in sharing 8% of the world
production with an average cultivated area of 1.06 million
hectare and an average annual production of 15.18 million
tonnes (NHB 2014-15). Small onions are also known as
country onion, shallots, multiplier or aggregatum onion.
This onion is produced only in southern states of India
viz., Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka (Kaveri
and Thirupathi 2015). In Tamil Nadu, aggregatum onion
is cultivated in 0.04 million hectares with a total
production of 0.47 million tonnes (NHB 2014-2015).
Storage loss of onion is caused by sprouting, rotting
and physiological loss in weight. According to Biswas
et al. (2010) reported that storage losses in onion could
be as high as 66%. Onion is highly perishable