Quantity And Quality Of Litterfall In Pure Pine And Pine/Gmelina Mixed Plantations In Umuahia, Abia State

An assessment of the pattern of litterfall and quality of litter were carried out in plantations of pure exotic Pine and Pine/Gmelina mixed plantations at Forestry Research Institute of Nigeria (FRIN) station Umuahia, Abia State. Litterfall was continuous with much of the litter falling between March and April in the pure Pine stand. April 2004 gave significantly (

Levels of Biologically Active Compounds and some Essential Metal in Parts of African Oil Bean Tree (Pentaclethra macrophylla)

The study assessed the phytochemical and mineral content in leaves, root and bark of Pentaclethra macrophylla in Amumara Mbaise, Imo State. The qualitative analysis show that the root extract had the highest tannin (++), flavonoid (+++), alkaloid (+++), and saponin (+++) with high degree of precipitation while phenol (+++) and phytate (+++) occurred in the leaves extract. Quantitatively, the highest significant (P<0.05) content of tannin (1.42±0.00 %), flavonoid (3.75±0.35 %, alkaloid (1.30±0.14 %), and saponin (3.40±0.00 %) were obtained in the root while the highest significant (P<0.05) content of the minerals: Mg (158.00±0.00 mg/100 g), Fe (16.50±0.00 mg/100 g), Na (165.00±0.00 mg/100 g), and Ca (224.15±0.00 mg/100 g) were observed in the leaves. The results indicate that P. macrophylla is a promising tree species that can improve the health of man.Key words: Mineral, phytochemical, leaves, root

Dynamics of Soil Nutrient and Macro-organism Population Following Land Conversion from Fallow to cultivated Farm

An assessment of soil physical and chemical features as well as the species richness of macro-organisms was carried out in a 2-year cultivated farm, 3-year fallow,8-year fallow and a 50 –year undisturbed relic forest all located within 1 km radius within Umudike. The 3-year cultivated plot had the lowest levels of N, P, k, Ca and organic matter which were 0.14%, 2.3, 0.012, 1.6 and 0.226, respectively. The percentage sand was highest in the 3-year cultivated plot while clay % was highest in the 50 year undisturbed vegetation. The difference in textural characteristics was more pronounced between 3-year cultivated soil and the 8 year fallow than between the 8 year fallow and the 50-year undisturbed relic forest, a condition attributable to the loosening of the soil and increased run-off occurring in the 3-year cultivated farm. The abundance of soil macro-organisms increased with advance in years of fallow and it was found to be associated with increased level of organic matter and species diversity of the vegetation cover. Only species in the annelida phyla occurred in all field conditions. Keywords: Fallow, Cultivation, Nutrient status and Soil macro-organism Journal of Agriculture and Food Sciences Vol. 4 (2) 2006: pp. 93-10