Impact of some essential plant oils on viability of stored cowpea and maize seeds for food security

Essential oils from three aromatic spice plants were applied on cowpea and maize seeds in storage and viability on germination was investigated. Cowpea and maize seeds were subjected to treatment using essential oils from (Monodora myristica, Eugenia aromatic and Piper guineese) at concentrations of 0, 5, 10, 15 and 20 ml/kg of seeds. These were stored at a temperature of 27±2oC and 65 -70% r.h. in the laboratory. The viability test was conducted on the treated seeds at three and six months of storage, using Petri-dishes each containing 10 of randomly selected cowpea and maize seeds in three replicates, at the different levels of oil concentrations. The seeds were placed on moistened cotton wools and covered. Seeds germination occurred mainly within three to five days after commencement of experiment. The data obtained were subjected to two – way analysis of variance, at (p< 5%) using Ducan’s multiple range test. It was observed that among the three essential oils applied, seeds treated with Piper guineese oil ranked highest in germinations at a concentration of 5 ml/kg for both seeds, with cowpea seeds having 88.7 and 83.0% and maize seeds with 69.3 and 45.3% at three and six months respectively

Acceptability and Sensory Evaluation of Maize and Cowpea Products Stored with some Essential Oils

The sensory evaluation and processing qualities of cooked maize paste (pap) and cooked cowpea paste(moinmoin) products from treated maize and cowpea grains stored with essential oils of three plant spices (Eugenia aromatica, Piper guineesis and Monodora myristica),were investigated. Essential oils were applied at dosage rate of 0, 5, 10, 15 and 20 ml/kg of stored grains for six months. The products were processed, cooked and evaluated for processing and sensory qualities to access the spices and concentration effects of the essential oils extracted with n-hexane. A 9- point hedonic scale was used to evaluate the sensory parameters of taste, aroma and appearance ranging from dislike extremely to like extremely. Panelists were administered well-structured questionnaires to assess the effect of the essential oils, from spices concentration and interaction between spice and concentration on the parameters assessed on the grains. Sensory evaluation data were subjected to 3x5 factorial arrangements. Pap from maize and moinmoin (cooked cowpea paste) from cowpea grains stored with dosage rate of 5 -10 ml/kg grains, were significantly accepted and preferred by the panelists. Nutmeg spiced products at 5 ml/kg for the grains products was ranked highest among other spices

Comparison of Water Adsorption Characteristics of Plantain and Cocoyam in a Controlled Storage Condition.

This investigation was conducted to study the behaviour of dehydrated products of cocoyam and plantain in a controlled storage environment at temperature range of 25 and 40oC. Salt solutions were used to achieve water activity that ranged from 0.08 to 0.97. Equilibrium moisture content obtained was used to produce sorption isotherms at these temperatures. Sorption models of Halsey, Chung Pfost, and Henderson were evaluated on the experimental data as well as modified versions of Halsey and Henderson. Co-efficient of determination ranged from 0.80 to 0.97 in all the models. Most equilibrium moisture content obtained during the experiment reflected adsorption except for very low water activity. Chung Pfost equation gave the best fit for the absorption characteristics of these crops having the least residual mean square within 0.03 to 0.11%. Plantain exhibited higher affinity for water than cocoyam in all the relative humidity range. Least moisture content derived for storage stability of these crops varied from 6.5 to 8.2 and 6.3 to 8.2 % in cocoyam and plantain respectively. The region of local isotherm II of relative humidity between 23 and 65 % was identified as the region for optimum storage

Impact of some essential plant oils on viability of stored cowpea and maize seeds for food security

Essential oils from three aromatic spice plants were applied on cowpea and maize seeds in storage and viability on germination was investigated. Cowpea and maize seeds were subjected to treatment using essential oils from (Monodora myristica, Eugenia aromatic and Piper guineese) at concentrations of 0, 5, 10, 15 and 20 ml/kg of seeds. These were stored at a temperature of 27±2oC and 65 -70% r.h. in the laboratory. The viability test was conducted on the treated seeds at three and six months of storage, using Petri-dishes each containing 10 of randomly selected cowpea and maize seeds in three replicates, at the different levels of oil concentrations. The seeds were placed on moistened cotton wools and covered. Seeds germination occurred mainly within three to five days after commencement of experiment. The data obtained were subjected to two – way analysis of variance, at (p< 5%) using Ducan’s multiple range test. It was observed that among the three essential oils applied, seeds treated with Piper guineese oil ranked highest in germinations at a concentration of 5 ml/kg for both seeds, with cowpea seeds having 88.7 and 83.0% and maize seeds with 69.3 and 45.3% at three and six months respectively. Keywords— cowpea, maize, food security, viability and essential oil