EFFECTS OF FERTILIZER TYPE AND CROPPING SYSTEM ON GROWTH AND DRY MATTER YIELD OF PHYSIC NUT (Jatropha curcas L.) IN THE RAINFOREST AGRO-ECOLOGY OF NIGERIA
Keywords:
Cropping system, Dry matter, Fertilizer, JatrophaAbstract
Productivity of crops depends largely on the suitability of soil environment in supplying the needed resources for growth and the competitive capacity of the component plants. A field experiment was conducted during the growing seasons of 2019 and 2020 at Ikenne and Ibadan, Southwest Nigeria to assess the effects of fertilizer type and cropping system on the growth and dry matter yield of Jatropha. The experiment was a split-plot arrangement in a Randomized Complete Block design, replicated three times. Fertilizer types (NPK; Organic; Organic + NPK (50:50) and control were the main plots while cropping systems of sole okra; sole Jatropha and Jatropha/okra intercrop were sub-plots. Data collected to determine Jatropha growth include plant height, number of leaves/plant, canopy width and dry matter yield. At Ikenne, organic fertilizer consistently produced more leaves (209) followed by organic + NPK (134) and the least from the control plant (87). Tallest plant was from organic (181.2 cm) followed by organic + NPK treatment (176.2 cm) as well as highest canopy width of 169.8 cm from organic followed by 130.9 cm from organic + NPK. At Ibadan, all the fertilizer sources had comparable effects on jatropha growth but were significantly higher than control plant. Growth of Jatropha expressed as canopy width, number of leaves/plant and plant height had similar values either as a sole crop or as intercrop. Jatropha had similar number of leaves/plant as a sole crop (31) and in intercrop (26) with okra at Ikenne. Similar trend was observed at Ibadan where at 56 WAS, sole jatropha produced 47 leaves which was similar with 33 from the intercrop. Similarly, in both locations, cropping system did not have significant effect on plant height and canopy width, indicating the compatibility of both crops at both sites. Dry matter yield was not affected by cropping system but was improved by fertilizer application. With higher root dry weight of between 5 and 35 % than the shoot dry weight, Jatropha was able to establish better via improved water and nutrient absorption resulting in proper plant establishment against possible soil erosion. Inclusion of Jatropha into cropping system in the rainforest zone and application of organic fertilizer, is therefore recommended.
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