Effect of Poultry Manure and Irrigation Depth on the Growth of Fluted Pumpkin (Telfairia occidentalis Hook. F) During the Dry Season in the Niger Delta Region of Nigeria

Abstract: Farmers in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria only practice rainfed agriculture, partly because of the misconception that the area has abundant rainfall even though the region has distinct wet and dry seasons. This, coupled with the low soil fertility always results in crops being produced at the subsistence level. This experiment was therefore conducted during the dry season to investigate the growth response of fluted pumpkin (Telfairia occidentalis Hook. F) to different combinations of poultry manure and depths of irrigation in a loamy sand soil. It was a randomized complete block design experiment involving three levels each of poultry manure and irrigation with three replications. The treatments comprised random combinations of 10, 20 and 30 t/ha poultry manure with 3, 4 and 5 mm depths of irrigation, including control treatment that had neither manure nor irrigation. Results indicated that the application of poultry manure and irrigation produced significantly higher values of all the growth parameters than the control. Although the combination of 30 t/ha manure and 4 mm depth of irrigation produced the maximum leaf area, the best result in terms of vine length, number of leaves, vine fresh weight and total shoot yield was obtained by combining 30 t/ha manure with 3 mm irrigation depth. This study therefore recommends the application of 30 t/ha poultry manure and 3 mm depth of irrigation for the cultivation of fluted pumpkin during the dry season in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria

Performance of irrigated maize in a crude-oil polluted soil remediated by three nutrients in Nigeria's Niger Delta

An in-situ simulated crude-oil polluted soil was remediated for 8 weeks by three different nutrients, and then used to plant maize (Farz 26) with a growth period of 14 weeks, with an irrigation depth of 4mm/day. Remediation consisted of the application of 16.667, 22.222, and 27.778 t/ha of NPK (15:15:15) fertilizer, spent mushroom substrate (SMS), and pig slurry (PS) to the polluted soil, laid out in randomized complete block design, with three replications, including a control that was neither polluted nor treated. Physico-chemical and microbial properties of the soil before and during remediation, and growth parameters of the maize were determined. Results indicated that 8 weeks after remediation, 27.778 t/ha of NPK, PS, and SMS reduced total hydrocarbon content (THC) by 87.3, 91.2, and 88.6% respectively. For maize, 14 weeks after planting resulted in a yield of 1.11, 1.20, and 1.17 t/ha from the soil remediated by 27.778 t/ha of NPK, PS, and SMS respectively, while the control yielded 2.58 t/ha. The difference in yields between the control and the remediated soils was significant at 5% level. The result indicated a 53.5% reduction in yield mainly due to the non-restoration of the soil to its original status

Assessment of river water quality for irrigation using multiple indices

The use of a single irrigation water index in the characterization of irrigation water quality may not suffice because of the combined and individual impact of several primary water physiochemical parameters on the overall water quality. Therefore, this study aimed to assess irrigation water quality using multiple indices. Surface water samples were taken from ten locations and analyzed using standard methods. The potential effects of the water quality on soil salinity, sodicity, and permeability hazards were assessed by using derived parameters including sodium adsorption ratio (SAR), soluble sodium percentage (SSP), permeability index (PI), Kelly's ratio, potential salinity (PS) and cation ratio of soil structural stability (CROSS)indices.SAR and CROSS values ranging from 1-1.93 and 0.86-1.36 respectively showed that all ten water samples had no sodicity hazard potential. KR and SSP, with values ranging from 0.66-1.58and 39.82-111.32 respectively, showedfour and eight samples were without sodicity hazard potentials, respectively.PS and Electrical conductivity assessed salinity hazard potential, while permeability hazard potential was assessed by the combinative indices of PI, SAR, and CROSS. Results of the indices showed that all ten river water samples were without permeability hazard potentials. However, with salinity hazards, EC and PS values which ranged between 128-552.38 S/cm and 0.52-0.84 showed that 90% and 100% of the river samples respectively were suitable for irrigation. Based on the results, using multiple indices is effective, but for sodicity hazard, the combinative use of SSP and KR should be accompanied by soil analysis

The effect of septic tank locations on borehole water quality in Port Harcourt, Nigeria

The effect of septic tank locations on borehole water quality in five locations in Port Harcourt metropolis of Rivers State, Nigeria, was investigated. The locations were Miles I and III, Old GRA, Rukpokwu and Ada George. Three boreholes and septic tanks were involve in each location. The distance between each borehole and septic tank was measured while water sample from each borehole was analysed for parameters such as appearance, taste, pH, electrical conductivity, temperature, salinity, and turbidity. Other parameters were total dissolved solid (TDS), phosphate, sulphate, nitrate, ammonium, chlorides, alkalinity, dissolved oxygen, biochemical oxygen demand, total heterotrophic bacteria (THB), total coliform bacteria (TCB) and faecal count bacteria (FCB). The results obtained from the various locations were compared with WHO drinking water quality standard. From the results, there was no problem with appearance and taste. However, the highest pH value was 4.4 from both Mile III and Ada George, with distance between borehole and septic tank of 6m and 9m respectively. The pH value is below that recommended by WHO (6.5-8.5), thus indicating that the water from all the locations, irrespective of distance between boreholes and septic tanks, is acidic. For Salinity, only water samples from Old GRA and Rukpokwu (0.1mg/l each) were outside WHO's specified limit of 0.05mg/l, despite the varying distances between boreholes and septic tanks. Water samples from all the other locations were also within the recommended WHO's limit for TDS, sulphate, nitrate and chloride. For total heterotrophic bacteria (THB), total coliform bacteria (TCB) and faecal count bacteria (FCB) only water samples from Ada George have values greater than that recommended by WHO. Water from Ada George, irrespective of distances between borehole and septic tank has the highest coliform contamination, thus rendering the water unsuitable for human consumption