Effect of Integrated Nutrient Management Approach on Soil Chemical and Physical Properties and Performance of Tomato (Lycopersicon Lycopersicum) Under Mildly-Acidic Alfisol Conditions

Collection and conversion of freely available wild-plant residues into composted materials for vegetable crop production (either as a substitute or supplement to the highly-priced chemical / synthetic fertilizers), may be beneficial to sustainable tropical crop production and improvement of soil conditions. Field studies were conducted in the year 2009, at the Teaching and Research Farms, Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso, Nigeria, to assess the response of tomato to Tithonia-compost with or without N-mineral fertilizer, and the effects of such integration on some soil properties. It was a factorial combination of three rates of compost application (0.0, 2.5 & 5.0 tons ha-1) and three rates of inorganic nitrogen application (0.0, 30.0 and 60.0 kg N ha-1). Data collected on growth and yield parameters were analyzed using ANOVA at p < 0.05. Compost application significantly improved soil properties, under sole and combined applications. Growth and yield parameters significantly increased with increased levels of sole and combined applications of compost and N-mineral fertilizer. Tomato responded best to integration of 30 kg N ha-1 of urea and 2.5 tons ha-1 of Tithonia-compost as reflected in best growth rate and fruit yield. The rate was found to be equally adequate for improved soil physical and chemical properties. Integration of organic and inorganic fertilizer is therefore essential for efficient soil management and crop production

Influence of Biofertilizer-Fortified Organic and Inorganic Nitrogenous Fertilizers on Performance of Sesame (Sesamum indicum Linn.) and Soil Properties Under Savanna Ecoregion

Application of chemical fertilizers as supplement to the pre-existing soil nutrients has become inevitable for obtaining optimum crop performance in the tropics. However, persistent application of inorganic fertilizers affects soil physicochemical conditions and reduces crop productivity. Integration of mycorrhizal inoculum as biofertilizer and organic manure with little inorganic fertilizer input could improve crop performance and soil quality. However, there is little information on response of crops particularly Sesame (Sesamum indicum L.) to such integrated nutrient management approach. Two greenhouse experiments were carried out at Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH), Ogbomoso, Nigeria and Institute of Agricultural Research and Training (I.A.R&T), Moor plantation, Ibadan, Nigeria to assess response of sesame to integrated nutrient management approach. Twelve factorial combinations each of integrated green tithonia biomass and urea, with and without Glomus clarum mycorrhizal inoculum were investigated. Trials were arranged in a completely randomized design with three replications. Data were collected on growth and yield parameters and analysed using ANOVA at p < 0.05. Mycorrhizal inoculation significantly enhanced sesame growth (except number of branches) and yield with or without applied N-source(s), compared to their non-inoculated counterparts. Sesame responded best to inoculation of 75% tithonia + 25 % Urea + Glomus clarum which significantly enhanced plant height, stem circumference, number of leaves, biomass yield and seed yield. Soil physical and chemical properties significantly improved with increasing application of green Tithonia-biomass. At above 50 % of urea integration, values of growth and yield parameters were statistically similar but significantly higher than the control. Thus, green Tithonia-biomass integration at 75 % level with urea at 25 % level to meet up N-requirement of sesame + mycorrhizal inoculum is suitable for optimum growth and yield of sesame and improved soil quality under savanna ecoregion

Influence of Combining Tithonia-Compost and N–Mineral Fertilizer Under Low Fertile Soil Conditions on Selected Soil Physico-Chemical Properties and Performance of Celosia argentea

Addition of organic materials as soil amendments has been identified as an alternative approach to application of chemical fertilizers for improved soil fertility and crop productivity in the tropics where most soils are relatively low in fertility. An organic-based fertilizer technology which allows integration of minimum dosage of chemical fertilizer may alleviate the drudgery involved in manure preparation and equally encourage more rapid release of nutrients. Field studies were carried out in the year 2010, at the Teaching and Research Farms, Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso, Nigeria, to assess the effects of combining four rates (0.0, 1.5, 3.0 and 6.0 t ha-1) of compost made from a common weed (Tithonia diversifolia Hemsl A. Gray) biomass and three rates (0.0, 20.0, 40.0 kg N ha-1) of inorganic nitrogen (urea) on growth, yield and nutrient uptake of Celosia argentea and soil properties. Trial was laid out in a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with four replications. Data were collected on growth and yield parameters and analysed using ANOVA at p < 0.05. Plant growth and yield significantly increased with increasing rate of urea and compost applications compared to the control. Combined application of 3.0 t ha-1 of compost and 20.0 kg N ha-1 significantly improved all the growth and yield parameters measured. Generally, values obtained from plants which received combined application of 6.0 tons ha-1 compost and 40.0 kg N ha-1 were statistically similar to those obtained from combined application of 3.0 t ha-1 of compost and 20.0 kg N ha-1 but significantly higher than other treatment combinations. Soil physical and chemical properties significantly improved with increasing application of Tithonia-compost. Thus, combined application of 3.0 t ha-1 of compost and 20.0 kg N ha-1 is adequate for optimum growth and yields of celosia and improved soil physical and chemical properties under low fertile soil condition

A Tale of Two Markets: How Lower-end Borrowers Are Punished for Bank Regulatory Failures in Nigeria

In 2009, the Nigerian banking system witnessed a financial crisis caused by elite borrowers in the financial market. Regulatory response to the Nigerian crisis closely mirrored the international response with increased capital and liquidity thresholds for commercial banks. While the rise of consumer protection on the agenda of prudential supervisors internationally was logical in that consumer debt was the main cause of the global recession, the Nigerian banking reforms of 2009 disproportionately affected access by poorer consumers, who ironically had little to do with the underlying causes of the crisis. As lending criteria become more stringent, poorer consumers of credit products are pushed into informal markets because of liquidity-induced credit rationing. Overall, consumer protection is compromised because stronger consumer protection rules for the formal sector benefits borrowers from formal institutions who constitute the minority of borrowers in all markets. While the passage of regulation establishing credit bureaux and the National Collateral Registry will, in theory, ease access to credit especially by lower-end borrowers, the vast size of the informal market continues to compound the information asymmetry problem, fiscal policies to tackle structural economic issues such as unemployment and illiteracy remain to be initiated, and bank regulators continue to pander to elite customers with policy responses that endorse too big to fail but deems lower-end consumers too irrelevant to save. The essay concluded that addressing the wide disparity in access to credit between the rich and poor through property rights reforms to capture the capital of the informal class, promoting regulation to check loan concentration, and stimulating competition by allowing Telecommunication Companies (TELCOs) and fintech companies to carry on lending activities because of their superior knowledge of lower-end markets will facilitate greater access. The risk of systemic failure deriving from consumer credit in Nigeria is insignificant compared to the consumer vulnerabilities resulting from the exposure of consumers to unregulated products in the informal market