Among various treatments, maximum b

Among various treatments, maximum biomass yield of different plant parts, viz., leaf, stem and flower was recorded in plants receiving nitrogen and sulphur in two equal split along with the basal dose of phosphorus and potassium (T4). Since, both nitrogen and sulphur are involved in biosynthesis of proteins and many other important biomolecules, hence, combined application of sulphur and nitrogen enhances their use and efficiency in plants. The strong interaction between sulphur and nitrogen has been reported by Abdin et al. (1996) and Ahmad et al. (1999) in terms of dry matter and yield in several crops. There are many reports showing the application of sulphur along with nitrogen increase the nitrogen use efficiency (Eppendorfer, 1971; Smith, 1975), and increased nitrogen level in plants enhance the leaf area index by increasing the leaf number and leaf size (Hagemann and Bellow, 1990). Adequate nitrogen and sulphur supply resulted better use of carbohydrates to form more protoplasm. The cell, produced under such conditions, tends to be large with thin walls (Black, 1967), which may result in better leaf area expansion that helps in the subsequent interception and efficient utilization of the solar radiation, resulting in better accumulation and distribution of dry matter in leaves and shoots.