Effect of organic and inorganic fertilizer on yield and chlorophyll content of maize (Zea mays L.) and sorghum Sorghum bicolour (L.) Moench)

The effects of amending soil with organic (poultry manure) and inorganic fertilizer on yield and chlorophyll content of maize (Zea mays L.) and sorghum (Sorghum bicolour (L.) Moench) was carried out at the Teaching and Research (T&R) Farm of the Obafemi Awolowo University, (O.A.U.) Ile - Ife, Nigeria. The experiment was a randomised complete block design (RCBD), laid out in a split-plot arrangement in the second cropping season of year 2001 and 2002. There were four sources of fertilizer for soil amendment: inorganic fertilizer (IF), mixture of inorganic fertilizer and poultry manure (IFPM), poultry manure (PM) and control (C) (no fertilizer or manure treatment). Each fertilizer source supplied 54 kg N plus 25 kg P2O5 and 25 kg K2O5/ha. There were significant variability and diversity observed on the two crops due to treatments. Grain yield was highest in sorghum (3.55 kg/ha) and maize (2.89 kg/ha) under IFPM followed by IF treatment for maize (2.33 kg/ha) and PM treatment for sorghum ((3.37 kg/ha). Sorghum and maize had the highest dry matter of 72.3 g/plant and 71.0 g/plant under IFPM at harvest. The effects of PM on the dry matter of sorghum (68.1 g/plant) and maize (61.7 g/plant) were not significantly different (p = 0.05) from that of IF (sorghum 66.1 g/plant, maize 58.7 g/plant). Sorghum also had the highest leaf area (LA) (2752.9 cm2/plant) and total chlorophyll content of 3.28 mg/g under PM while maize on the other hand had the highest LA (1969.5 cm2/plant) and total chlorophyll content of 2.63 mg/g under IFPM. In both maize and sorghum, the lowest chlorophyll content occurred in control plot. Drought tolerance measured as percentage chlorophyll stability index (CSI%) was highest under control plots in both crops

Determinants of cocoa farmer’s participation in the innovation platform of the humidtropics programme in Southwestern Nigeria

Open Access JournalIn an effort to determine factors influencing cocoa farmer’s participation in innovation platform (IP) activities of the Humidtropics programme, data was collected from purposively selected 177 farmers using multistage technique sampling technique and was gathered through the use of structured interview schedule. Data were collected and analyzed with percentage, frequency counts, mean, standard deviation and factor analysis. The study shows the mean age of the cocoa farmers in the IP to be 51.16±12.64 with about 52% aged above 50 years, female were only (23.73%), with more than 75th percentile literacy level and only about 31% of respondents generate annual income from farming above ₦50,000 while about 70% made below ₦40,000 extra income from other occupation. The mean farm size was 16.87 ±16.04 acre, farming experience 25.42±10.48 years and household size was 9.78±5.52. The six significant determinants of cocoa farmer’s participation in IP arranged in order of magnitude are psychological factor (λ = 3.158), experience factor (λ = 2.164), community related factor (λ = 1.697) educational factor (λ = 1.854), economic factor (λ =1.438) and internal factor (λ = 1.113). The summative effect of the identified factors accounted for 76.17 % variation observed in cocoa farmer’s participation in the IP

Economics of poultry manure utilization in land quality improvement among integrated poultry-maize-farmers in South-western Nigeria

The rapid growth of Nigerian's poultry has made it more advantageous in terms of providing the essential raw material for soil fertility enhancement than other livestock. This paper evaluates the benefits of poultry manure use among integrated poultry-maize farmers in Ekiti and Osun States of Nigeria for improved land quality and continuous food production. Data were collected using structured survey questionnaires administered on 500 randomly selected respondents in the two States. Data were analysed with descriptive statistics and costs and returns techniques. Respondents were small holders, with land area grown to maize varying between 0.01 and 3.00 hectare. Majority of the respondents have personal farms but applied poultry manure only on small portions (25%) of the total cropped area of their farmlands. On the average, 53% of the respondents used poultry manure on their farms. Respondents were fairly literate with a mean age of 43 years. Major constraints to poultry manure use include odour, transportation, scarcity, wetness, bulkiness and time wastage in descending order of importance. While odour and transportation were identified as common problems among poultry manure users in Ekiti and Osun States, bulkiness was an additional constraint for non-user respondents in both states. Poultry manure material constituted about 91% of the total cost of inputs; transportation cost was 8% while labour cost averaged 2%. The mean net income earned per annum by poultry manure users was 1.40 times higher than that for non-users. The difference in mean net income users and non-users of poultry manure constitutes an important land improvement technique capable of enhancing farm production and income levels. Thus, technologies aimed at packaging it in such a way as to remove the associated social constraints to its use by farmers need be put in place. Keywords: - Economics, poultry manure, farmers, land improvement, Nigeria

Influence of poultry manure and inorganic nitrogen fertilizer on grain yield and proximate component of two cultivars of cowpea (Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walps)

A study on the influence of poultry manure and inorganic nitrogen fertilizer on grain yield and proximate composition of two cultivars of cowpea (Ife Brown and IT86D - 719) was carried out at the Teaching and Research (T&R) Farm of the Obafemi Awolowo University, (O.A.U.) Ile - Ife, Nigeria. The two cultivars of cowpea were planted in a randomised complete block design (RCBD), laid out in a split-plot arrangement in two seasons and treated with four sources of fertilizer (inorganic fertilizer (IF), mixture of inorganic fertilizer and poultry manure (IFPM), poultry manure (PM) and no fertilizer or manure treatment referred to as the control (C). Each fertilizer source supplied 20 kg N/ha basal dosage. The variability and diversity observed were due to the genotypic variations of the crops and response to the fertilizer levels. The effect of the poultry manure and inorganic fertilizers on yield /yield components and proximate composition were significantly different from the control. Grain yield and yield components (the number of peduncles per plant (PEP), peduncle length (PEL), number of pods per plant (POP), dry pod weight (PDW), biomass (BM) and grain yield per plant (YLD/PLT)) were affected by the fertilizer levels, seasonal changes, cultivars; thus having significant influence on the final yield of the two cultivars; while pod length (PL), number of pods per peduncle (PPE), number of seeds per pod (NSP), 100SW were not. The crude protein, percent crude fibre, total nitrogen and carbohydrate content of the grains varied among cultivars and were significantly improved by fertilizer source, especially IFPM and PM. The significant response observed in the nutritional composition indicated differential utilization of nutrients under different treatments. The differential response of Ife Brown and IT86D-719 to poultry manure and inorganic fertilizer is clearly manifested on the grain yield, crude protein, percent crude fibre, total nitrogen and carbohydrate content of the grains of the two cultivars. Key Words: cowpea; cultivars; nutrient source; poultry manure; proximate composition; yield Moor J. Agric. Res. Vol.4(1) 2003:37-4

Incidence and management of plant parasitic nematodes under continuous vegetable production in a rainforest agroecology in Nigeria

Field studies were conducted in 2012 and 2013 in the tropical rainforest zone of Nigeria to investigate the effects of a composted, pelletised organo-mineral fertiliser applied as an organic amendment at 5 metric tonnes (MT) ha–1 or at 10 MT ha–1 in four replications, on soil population densities of five genera of plant-parasitic nematodes and on crop yields of Telfairia occidentalis (fluted pumpkin). The experimental field was naturally infested with Meloidogyne incognita, Tylenchus spp., Helicotylenchus spp., Hirschmaniella spp., and Longidorus spp. The compost was applied as an amendment to soil planted with T. occidentalis 3 weeks after seedling emergence. At the end of both annual experiments, the addition of compost as a soil amendment resulted in 16.25 – 65.75% reductions in the populations of all five genera of plant–parasitic nematodes compared to an increase in each nematode population in the untreated control plots. There was also a higher crop yield of T. occidentalis in all eight treated plots compared to the control plots. Compost applied at 10 MT ha–1 reduced the soil populations of all nematode species significantly, with correspondingly higher yields of the crop compared to 5 MT compost ha–1 in both years of study. Correlation analysis showed that the population density of each nematode species had a negative effect on the cumulative leaf biomass (fresh weight) of the test crop. The results of this study suggest that nematodes constrained the production of T. occidentalis under continuous cropping and that a composted, pelletised organo-mineral fertiliser, applied as a soil amendment at 10 MT ha–1, suppressed soil populations of all five nematodes significantly and increased yields of T. occidentalis by 109 – 366% compared to the untreated control plots

In vitro evaluation of antisickling activity of herbal combination of three medicinal plants

Sickle cell disorder is a genetic ailment with enormous social and economic burden for patients and caregivers. The most promising management apart from being expensive particularly for poor African people, faces some major incompatibility problems. The patients consequently rely on herbal therapy which could be prepared in single or combination forms to manage the painful episodes and its complications. This present study aimed to formulate polyherbal combination and evaluate three purposively selected plants previously reported for their antisickling activities. The polyherbal products were formulated using both aqueous and 70% ethanol extracts into different combinational ratio with the best in 1:1:1 and evaluated for its antisickling activity. The antisickling activity involved both the inhibitory and reversal effects at varying concentrations from 1.0 mg/ml to 6.0 mg/ml using ciklavit as the positive control. The best inhibitory activity was found in ethanol extract of Piper guineense, Gongronema latifolium and Cymbopogon citratus (PGC) with 70.09 ± 0.67% when compared with the positive control (59.25 ± 0.05%) at 4.0 mg/mg while the reversal ability was 67.87 ± 1.23%. The aqueous extracts of the combinations had activity above 50% with the exception of PGC (2:3:1) which is a little less than 50% (46.67 ± 0.98%) while the highest was 60.02 ± 0.87%. The polyherbal ethanol extract had better effects than the aqueous extract and the standard drug used in this study

Effects of different fertilizer sources and rates on proximate and phytochemical composition of three cucumber varieties (Cucumis sativus L.)

Proximate and phytochemical analysis of three cucumber varieties (Poinsett, Marketer and Marketmore) as influenced by the application of fertilizer types and rates was carried out at the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology of the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife. Cucumber was subjected to four fertilizer types: Organic fertilizer, Liquid organic fertilizer, Urea fertilizer and NPK fertilizer applied at the rate of 0, 75 and 120kg N/ha. Proximate compositions showed several disparities with the different treatments. Poinsett, Marketer and Marketmore varieties responded well to Liquid organic fertilizer treatment at all rates to produce significantly (p<0.05) high percentage carbohydrate contents and dry matter contents. Higher rates of Urea and Organic fertilizer favoured the production of crude protein. The qualitative phytochemical analysis showed that Marketer and Marketmore varieties accounted for the highest secondary metabolites. Phenols were readily available in all varieties regardless of the nutrient source. NPK and Urea fertilizer produced more phenols and at higher rates, accounted for more flavonoids in Marketer and Marketmore varieties. 120 Kg N NPK increased the percentage carbohydrate in Poinsett, Markerter and Marketmore by 48%, 5% and 1% respectively. Also, 120 Kg N NPK accounted for 30% and 2 % increase in proximal fruit dry matter for both Poinsett and Marketmore varieties respectively whereas 120 Kg N Liquid Organic fertilizer boosted fruit dry matter in Marketer by only 10%. Results showed that organic fertilizer improved the nutritional values in cucumber fruit compared with inorganic fertilizer but increased the perishability by increasing the moisture content. However, there is the need to further quantify the concentration of the secondary metabolites in cucumber fruits for nutritional values.Keywords: Cucumber, Fertilizer, Phytochemicals, Proximate Compositio

Gender Differentials and Optimal Combination of Crop Enterprises under Limited Resource Conditions in South Western Nigeria: A Case Study of Cocoa-based Farming Systems

This study investigated gender differentials and an optimal combination of crop enterprises in southwestern. Specifically, it described the socio-economic characteristics of households in cocoa-based farming by gender; determine enterprise combinations of households in the cocoa-based farming systems and profile gender participation in optimal farm plan activities in cocoa-based farming systems. A multistage sampling procedure was used to select 200 respondents, comprising 147 males and 53 females. Data were collected on socioeconomic characteristics such as age, household size, years of schooling and year of farming experience among others. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and linear goal programming. Descriptive statistics show that majority of the respondents aged above 60 years comprising of 46.5% male and 2% females, married comprising of 69.5% male and 20% female, and had a household size of between 7 and 12 persons, with males accounting for 25.5% and females 12.5%. Most of the respondents had primary school education in the study area, with 73.8% male and 26.2% female. Goal ranking showed that food security; increased income; and reduced production cost are the most important goals among farmers in the cocoa-based farming system. The linear goal programming model shows that Cocoa and Banana; Cocoa, Oil Palm and Plantain and Cocoa, Maize, Cassava and Orange are the optimal enterprise combination. It further showed that farmers will incur a cost of N38, 833.56/ha on the three basic activities to achieve the stated goals. The shadow prices for the fully utilized resources were N9348, N1352 and N6.52 for land, hired labour and capital respectively. The result further showed that 67 percent of the goal components was achieved. Percentages of female-headed households in cocoa/banana, cocoa/oil palm/plantain and cocoa/maize/cassava/orange enterprises were 45%, 31% and 0% respectively. For the goals of food security, increased income and reduced farm production costs to be accomplished in the study area, farmers should produce 0.2 ha of cocoa/banana, 1.2 ha of cocoa/oil palm/plantain and 1.25 ha of cocoa/maize/cassava/orange in the study area. Also, conscious efforts should be made by policymakers to ensure gender equality in the access and use of productive farm resources