Effect of Npk Fertilizer Application on the Growth and Yield of Cucumber
Chapter One
Objective of the study
It is therefore the objectives of the study to:
(i) evaluate the effect of different rates of inorganic fertilizer using NPK 20:10:10, on the growth and yield parameters of cucumber,
(ii) evaluate varietal responses to treatment application under a southern Guinea savanna agro ecology.
CHAPTER TWO
LITERATURE REVIEW
Background Information
Cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) is an annual herbaceous plant belonging to the Cucurbitaceae family. The Cucurbitaceae family is well defined but taxonomically isolated from other plant families. Two subfamilies — Zanonioideae and Cucurbitoideae — are well characterized: the former by small, striate pollen grains and the latter by having the styles united into a single column. The food plants all fall within the subfamily Cucurbitoideae. Further definition finds cucumber (Cucumissativus L.) and melon (Cucumismelo L.) to be within the subtribeCucumerinae, tribe Melothrieae. There are about 118 genera and over 800 species in the Cucurbitaceae (Jeffrey 1990a). Cucumber is an ancient vegetable and one of the most important members of the Cucurbitaceae family (Thoa, 1998) that is cultivated for its fruit which is a rich source of minerals and vitamins. The fruit is eaten fresh in salads in accompaniment with other vegetables. The root is a tap one and branching. The bulk of the root is located in the arable layer. Under favorable conditions, the emergence occurs 4-6 days after sowing. The stem length and the number of side shoots vary greatly according to the variety and growing conditions.
Cucumber is an annual crop which usually grows as vines. There are several varieties of cucumber, some are pickling, while others are consumed directly. It is majorly grown for the fruit. In recent times, cucumber has been cultivated in tropical areas although it has its origin from Asia. Considering the nutritional benefit and industrial significance of cucumber, there has been an increase in its production.
CHAPTER THREE
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Description of the Experimental Site
The experiment was carried out at the crop pavilion of the Department of Agronomy, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Ilorin, between October 2013 and February, 2014. Ilorin lies at latitude 80 30’ N and longitude 40 33’E with an annual rainfall of 1186mm. the mean annual temperature is 290C while the average annual relative humidity is about 85%.
CHAPTER FOUR
RESULTS
Results of Soil Analysis
The results of some physical and chemical properties of the soil of the experimental site are presented on Table 4.1. The results show that the soil is slightly acidic, sandy, high in organic matter and organic carbon, low in available phosphorus, potassium, effective cation exchange capacity and nitrogen is moderate.
CHAPTER FIVE
DISCUSSION
5.1 Preamble
Compared to any other vegetable, cucumber is an ancient vegetable and one of the most important members of the Cucurbitaceae family (Thoa, 1998) that is cultivated for its fruit which is a rich source of minerals and vitamins. Its economic importance cannot be overemphasized as it is an important fruit vegetable .grown in Nigeria. Many varieties of cucumber exist with varying shapes and sizes, skin colour and carotene content (Simon, 1992). The variation in the performance of cucumber varieties has been widely documented by many scholars (Axelson et al., 1980; Manyvong, 1997), which could be as a result of genetic composition or environmental factors. However, vegetable production in the tropics is facing the problem of declining soil fertility. This is because vegetable crops are grown on farms that are intensively cropped, resulting in low yield (Akinrinde, 2006). Many studies on various crops have shown significant advantages of applying inorganic fertilizers (Akinrinde, 2006).
5.2 Effect of NPK fertilizer on growth parameters
The plant height, number and area of leaves as well as number of branches are among the most important growth parameters directly linked with potential productivity of plants (Abdulmaliq, 2013). This opinion has earlier been emphasized by Saeed et al., (2001) who reported that an optimum plant height, number and area of leaves in maize were positively correlated with maize productivity. The results of the present study showed that vine length, number and area of leaves per plant, number of branches per plant increased with increasing rates of NPK fertilizer application up to 100 kgNha-1 with the three evaluated cucumber varieties. This was in contrast to the reports of the earlier workers (Diaz et al. (1973), Pandey et al (1974), Bradley et al (1976), Kmiecik (1976), Yuasa and Aboaba (1981), El-Badawi (1994), Lawal (2000), Agba and Enya (2005); Eifediyi and Remison (2009) who had all reported increase in the growth and yield components of cucumber to applied fertilizer. The significant response of the parameters evaluated (vine length, number of leaves, number of branches and leaf area) to applied NPK fertilizer may be an indication that the nutrients taken up by the plants were well utilized in cell multiplication, amino acid synthesis and energy formation hence increase in photosynthesis. The improved supply of nutrients to cucumber by the application of fertilizer could have led to the better utilization of carbon and subsequent synthesis of assimilates.
5.3 Effects of NPK fertilizer on Yield components and Fruits yield of cucumber
The dry matter of cucumber increased with increased rate of NPK fertilizer application (Table 4.13). This was in conformity with the findings of Lamido (1994). However, fertilizer application had no significant effects on length and circumference of cucumber fruits as shown in Table 4.15. This was in agreement with the work of Eifediyi and Remison (2009) which showed that fertilizer application had no significant effect on length and girth of two cucumber fruits (Ashley and Palmetto). Fertilizer application also had no significant effect on the number of fruits and the total fresh fruit weight. This has not been reported in any literature so far.
5.4 Varietal Responses
Significant differences in growth characteristics were obtained among the three evaluated cucumber varieties in the present study. The results showed significant differences in growth parameters such as vine length, number and area of leaves, number of branches, days to flowering, number of male, female and total flowers. These results were in consonance with the report of Eifediyi and Reminson (2009) that showed significant differences among cucumber varieties in growth parameters. The results were also in line with the reports of earlier workers (Diaz et al, 1973; Pandey et al, 1974; Bradley et al, 1976; Kmiecik, 1976; Yuasa and Aboaba, 1981; El-Badawi, 1994; Lawal, 2000; Agba and Enya, 2005) who all reported significant differences in growth parameters among cucumber varieties.
Summary and Conclusion
Improvement in growth, yield characteristics and eventual crop yield are the objectives of all agronomic management practices including fertilizer application. However, the economy of production is dependent on the application of the right amount (neither too high, nor too low). It was therefore, the objective of this study to determine the rate of NPK fertilizer application for optimum growth and yield in cucumber plants.
Field experiment was therefore conducted in 2013 at the crop pavilion, Department of Agronomy University of Ilorin, Ilorin in the southern Guinea savannah ecology. The experiment was designed as a 3 x5 factorial in RCBD, arranged in split-plots and replicated three times. The main plots consisted of three cucumber varieties (Marketer, Marketmore and Poinsett), while the sub-plots were made up of five levels (0, 25, 50, 75 and 100kgNha-1) of NPK fertilizer. Plant growth parameters (vine length, number of leaves per plant, number of branches per plant, leaf area per plant, number of days to first flowering, number of male flowers, number of female flowers and total number of flowers) as well as yield characteristics (dry matter, fruit length, fruit circumference, number of fruit per plant, fresh fruit weight) were measured. Data were analyzed by the Analysis of Variance, using the split-plots model and significant means were separated by the Least Significant Difference at 5 percent probability level (LSD0.05). The results showed that the application of the NPK fertilizer appreciably improved the growth performances (vine length, number of leaves per plant, number of branches per plant, leaf area per plant) of cucumber, with 100KgNha-1 been the most outstanding rate. However, application of NPK fertilizer does not have any significant effect on the yield performances of cucumber.
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