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Science Journal of Agricultural Research & Management
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Research Article
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Volume 2012, Article ID sjarm-152, 6 Pages, 2012. doi: 10.7237/sjarm/152
Cow Dung and Cassava Peel Effect on Selected Soil Nutrient Indices and Germination of Maize
Dr. Roseta C Eneje¹*, C. J. Nwosu¹
Accepted 2nd April, 2012
¹*Michael Okpara University of Agriculture Umudike
¹Department of Soil Science And Agro-climatology,
Nigeria.
Corresponding Author Email: chizma2001@ yahoo.com
Abstract
The effect of organic manures from cowdung and cassava peel in single and
combined application on selected soil nutrient indices and maize
germination was assessed on a sandyclayloam soil in South Eastern Nigeria.
The selected soil nutrient indices were electrical conductivity, (EC), soil
activity (pH) N-mineralization (N-M), exchangeable cations (ECEC) percent
base saturation (BS%), available phosphorus(avail P), and total organic
carbon (OC). These and the germination percent of maize were assessed
in the green house of Michael Okpara University of Agriculture Umudike,
the organic manure were applied at 0%, 1% 5% and 10% respectively on
3kg soil . The germination percent was assessed within 7days in the green
house. The treatment were replicated three times and incubated for one
week before samples were taken for laboratory analysis. Data obtained
were subjected to ANOVA using a 4X3 factorial in a CRD; significant means
was separated using FLSD0.05. Result indicated statistically significant
effect of organic manure treatments on EC, ECEC, Ca and Na++ ions in the
amended soil, while the other nutrient indices were not significantly
affected. Spearman Rank Correlation between germination percentage of
maize and the nutrient indices indicated that OC% and N-mineralization
were low but correlated positively and significantly with germination
percentage while available P was high but had an inverse relationship with
germination percentage indicating that the improvements in percent OC
and N-mineralization resulted in more maize seed germination within the
period of assessment.
Keyword:Germination percentage, N-mineralization, organic carbon,
electrical conductivity, ECEC
Introduction
Agricultural productivity is generally limited by nutrient
supply because either the soil does not supply enough of one
or more nutrient or sometimes because too much of a
nutrient is freely available to a plant. Benefits of compost
amendment to soil also include pH stabilization, faster water
infiltration, enhanced soil aggregation, better or enhanced
direct nutrient uptake by plant of specific chemicals needed
for the development of the immune system. The properties
of soil that ensure that there is satisfactory nutrient supply
for crops grouped as soil nutrient indices is thus paramount
importance before advocacy of intensive input into the soil.
Soil acidity and organic matter have been recognized as
most important variable which control satisfactory nutrient
supply (Hawksworth, 1984). Reports (Griffin et al. 2000)
indicate that the amount of N in manure for instance vary
with different manures, hence manure application on
farmland to increase soil fertility traditionally on the basics
of crop N requirement ensured accurate and efficient use of
input as well as maximization of crop yield and net return.
Also research report suggest that manure application in
excess of crop needs can cause significant build up of
phosphorus, nitrogen and other ions and salts, (Hao et al.,
Corresponding Author:Dr. Roseta C Eneje
Michael Okpara University of Agriculture Umudike
Email: chizma2001@yahoo.com
2003), thus insufficient knowledge of specific fertilizer
values and inadequate application rates can result in under
or over use and ultimate knowledge depend on specific
locations type of amendment and crop of interest. Therefore
the objective of this study is to investigate the effect of
composts from cassava peel and poultry manure on the
germination percentage of maize and on selected soil
nutrient indices.
Materials and Methods
Study site
The experiment was carried in the green house with soil
samples collected at the Western farm of Michael Okpara
University of Agriculture Umudike, Abia State. The location
is within the low land rainforest and lies between latitude
050 29N and longitude 070 32E, with a mean annual and
minimum temperature of 320C and 230C respectively, and
mean altitude of 122m above sea level. It has an annual
rainfall range of 1512-2731mm and relative humidity of
63%-80% (NRCRI, Umudike, 2005).
Organic amendments
The organic amendments used were cow dung (CD) and
cassava peels (CP) in single and combined applications (CD,
CP, CD+CP) and a control (C). The cow dung was collected
from MOUA animal farm and the cassava peel was collected
from NRCRI cassava mill, the treatment were applied at the
rates of 0%, 1%, 5% and 10% equivalent to 0g, 30g, 150g
and 300g per 3Kg soil respectively. Each of the treatments
was replicated three times.
Soil sampling and incubation
Soil sample was collected at 0-30cm depth, air dried and
passed through a 2mm mesh sieve, before amendment
application and incubation. The treatments were applied at
the selected rates in the 3kg capacity buckets perforated at
the bottom to allow free movement of water and air and
moistened to 50% field capacity water content and
incubated for one week after which samples were collected
for laboratory analysis.
Laboratory analysis
Soil nutrient indices analyzed were soil activity (soil pH in
a 1:2.5 soil water suspension with CaCl2 using EEL glass
Science Journal of Agricultural Research & Management (ISSN:2276-8572)
Page 2
electrode pH meter (Maclean, 1965), organic carbon by the
dichromate wet oxidation method (Walkley and Black,
1934), total nitrogen by Macro Kjeldahl method (Bremner
and Mulvaney 1982) and available phosphorus was
determined using Bray II method as described by Bray and
Kurtz (1945). Exchangeable acidity was determined by
titration method, exchangeable K, Ca, Mg, and Na in the
filtrate were determined using a flame photometer with
A kg SOM
100kg soil
Bkg soil
ha15cmdeep
appropriate filter and Mg determined using atomic
absorption spectrophotometer. Nitrogen mineralization was
determined as described by Brady and Weil (2002). Based
on predetermined value of organic matter content of a soil,
soil management practices and climate and soil texture an
estimation of the amount of N mineralizable per year was
made using the following equation: kgNMineralised=
CkgN
100kgSOM
DkgSOM mineralized
100kgSOM
Where A= amount of soil organic matter (SOM) in the upper 15cm of soil
B= weight of soil per hectare to the depth of 15cm
C = amount of nitrogen in the SOM
D = amount of SOM likely to be mineralized in one year, for a given soil (a value of 2.5kg SOM mineralized / 100kg
SOM was assumed)
Electrical conductivity (EC)
This was determined in 1:2 soil / water ratio using
conductivity bridge (Rhaodes 1982). The soil sample was
saturated with distilled water and mixed to a paste
consistency, after standing overnight the electrical
conductivity of water extracted from the paste was
measured (ECe). The variant of this method involves the EC
of the solution extracted from a 1:2 soil -water mixture after
0.5hours of shaking (ECw). Data Analysis Data collected
was subjected to analysis of variance using a 4X3 factorial
in complete randomized design (CRD), significant means
were detected using least significant difference (F-LSD) at
5% probability level. Data were also subjected to correlation
analysis using spearman's rank correlation coefficient.
Results and Discussion
The properties of the amendments used for this study (Table
1) show that the cowdung and cassava peels used were
strongly alkaline, while nutrient status as indicated by the
C:N ratio, organic carbon, phosphorous and nitrogen were
higher in cassava peel than in the cowdung. The textural
class of the soil used in this study (Table 2), is sandy clay
loam. The soil was high in organic carbon and effective
cation exchange capacity, while the exchangeable acidity
and exchangeable bases were moderately low. There were
increases in the pH and electrical conductivity of the
amended soil over the control, (Table 3) the increases in soil
pH in the amended soil is attributable to the precipitation
of Al(OH)3 in to soil solution, the cassava peels had the
lowest electrical conductivity values relative to the control
and other organic amendments. These observations are
supported by reports of Rangaraj et al (2007) that the
application of organic matter is associated with
improvements in soil pH. There were improvement in
effective cation exchange capacity and calcium over the
How to Cite this Article: Dr.
control (Table 3), the highest improvement was obtained
with the admixture of cowdung and cassava peels. This is
attributable to the quality of organic amendment used as
indicated in table 1, which supports the improvements in
the exchangeable acidity and organic matter content of the
amended soil over the control. The observations are
supported by the research reports of Eneje and Ukwuoma
(2005) and Ano and Agwu 2005) who attributed these
effects to precipitation of Al(OH)3
Research
reports
(Anikwe, 2000; Mbah and Mbagwu, 2006) also support the
fact that there exist a close relationship between nutrient
status of the soil and organic matter content as found in this
study (Table 4). In this study available P correlated
negatively with all the selected nutrient indices except
electrical conductivity, suggesting that the soils available P
concentration increased as the electrical conductivity
increased, while the effective cation exchange capacity and
soil pH were adversely related. Soil mineral nitrogen
correlated positively with % BS, ECEC ionic salts (Ca+,
Na++and K+) content as well as percent OC, but negatively
with exchangeable acidity and electrical conductivity. The
degree of relationship between selected nutrient indices and
percent germination of maize (Table 5), show that there was
a positive but low correlation between percent germination
and organic carbon and N-mineralization, while available P
had high but negative relationship with germination
percentage. This indicates that organic carbon and Nmineralization increases resulted in more of the maize seeds
germinating within the period of assessment while available
P did not positively affect the germination rate of maize.
Generally on addition of manure soil fertility level and yield
of soil is raised greater than soils that received no treatment
or other inputs. Also manure application in excess of crop
needs especially on long term basics can result in a
significant build up of phosphorous, nitrogen and other ions
and salts in the soil.
Roseta C Eneje, C. J. Nwosu, “Cow Dung and Cassava Peel Effect on Selected Soil Nutrient Indices and Germination of Maize” Science
Journal of Agricultural Research & Management, Volume 2012, Article ID sjarm-152, 6 Pages, 2012. doi: 10.7237/sjarm/152
Science Journal of Agricultural Research & Management (ISSN:2276-8572)
Summary and Conclusion
This study observed that organic materials from cassava
peels and cowdung affected effective cation exchange
capacity, electrical conductivity, calcium and magnesium of
the soil under study. Increases were observed especially
with the application of admixture of Cowdung and Cassava
peels, for ECEC with the highest values obtained at the
1000t/ha rate of application, while decreases in electrical
conductivity was obtained only with application of Cow
dung alone. These effects were observed as early as one
week after amendment application. Spearman rank
correlation of parameters show that the germination
percent increased as organic carbon and N increased while
available P had no significant effect on germination of maize
seed.
Page 3
13. Rangaraj, T. Somasundaram, E. Mohamed Amanullah, M.
Thirumrugan, V, Ramesh, S. and Ravi, S. (2007). Effect of
Agro-industrial waste on soil properties and yield of irrigated
Finger Millet (Eleusine Covacana L. Gaertn) In Coastal Soil.
Research Journal of agriculture and Biological Sciences , 3(3):
pp153-156.
14. Walkley A. and Black I. A. (1934). An examination of the
different method for determining soil organic matter and
proposed modification of the chromic and digestion method.
Soil Science 37:29-338.
References
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Anikwe, M. A. N. (2000). Amelioration of a heavy clay loam
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Method of Soil Analysis Part 2. 2nd ed A.L. Page et al eds). Pp
595-624. ASA Soil Sci. Soc. America Journal. Madison,
Wisconsin.
Eneje, R. C. and Ukwuoma, V. E. (2005) Plant and animal
organic manure effects on a vegetable and orchard farm soils.
Part I: Effect on soil chemical properties. Journal of
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1 (1).34-39.
Griffin, T. S. and C W. Honeycutt. (2000). Using growing degree
days to predict nitrogen availability from live stock manures.
Soil Science Soc. America Journal 64: pp1876-1882.
Hao, X., C. Chabe, G. R. Travia, F. Zhang. (2003). Soil and Carbon
and Nitrogen response to 25 annual cattle manure application.
Journal of Plant Nutrition and Soil Science 166: 239-245.
Hawksworth, D. L. (1984) Advancing Agricultural production
in Africa. Proceedings of CAB's First Scientific Conference,
Arusha, Tanzania, 12-18.
Mbah, C. N. and Mbagwu, J. S. C. (2006). Effect of animal waste
in physicochemical properties of a dystric Leptosol and maize
yield in South Eastern Nigeria. Nigerian Journal of Soil Science
Vol. 16, 104-108.
10. McLean, I. O. (1965): Aluminium in L. A, Black (ed) Methods
of Soil Analysis. Part II Am. Soc. Agro Madison N1pp 976-985.
11. Mosaddeghi, M. R. Hajabbasi, M. A. Hemmat, A. M. Afuni
(2000). Soil Compatibility as
affected by soil moisture
content and farmyard manure in Central Iran. Soil T i l l a g e
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Roseta C Eneje, C. J. Nwosu, “Cow Dung and Cassava Peel Effect on Selected Soil Nutrient Indices and Germination of Maize” Science
Journal of Agricultural Research & Management, Volume 2012, Article ID sjarm-152, 6 Pages, 2012. doi: 10.7237/sjarm/152
Science Journal of Agricultural Research & Management (ISSN:2276-8572)
Page 4
Table1: Properties of amendment used for the study
Properties
Cowdung
Cassava peel
OC (%)
39.24
43.55
OM (%)
67.64
75.08
N(%)
2.17
1.75
C:N
18.08
24.89
K (%)
1.60
1.20
P (%)
0.067
0.056
pH(H2O)
8.57
7.46
Ece (µs/cm)
3816.0
1295.0
Table 2: Physico-chemical characteristics of the soil used for the study
Characteristics
Values
Sand (%)
77.8
Silt (%)
6.00
Clay (%)
16.2
Textural class
Sandy clay loam
pH (H2O)
5.06
K+ (cmol+/kg)
0.11
Ca++(cmol+/kg)
10.65
Mg+ (cmol+/kg)
2.30
Na++ (cmol+/kg)
0.06
N (%)
0.17
ECEC(cmol+/kg)
14.18
Base Saturation
92.16
EA (cmol+/kg)
1.12
Ece (µs/cm)
500.0
How to Cite this Article: Dr.
Roseta C Eneje, C. J. Nwosu, “Cow Dung and Cassava Peel Effect on Selected Soil Nutrient Indices and Germination of Maize” Science
Journal of Agricultural Research & Management, Volume 2012, Article ID sjarm-152, 6 Pages, 2012. doi: 10.7237/sjarm/152
Science Journal of Agricultural Research & Management (ISSN:2276-8572)
Page 5
Table 3: Effect of composted amendment on selected physicochemical properties of study soils.
Treatment Ece (µs/cm)
K
OM (%)
ECEC (cmol+/kg)
EA (Cmol+/kg)
(Cmol+/kg)
A
B
C
a
B
c
a
b
C
a
b
c
c
a
b
CD
349
820
1169
0.133
0.157
0.173
4.99
6.22
5.95
25.2
25.1
27.4
1.33
1.49
1.13
CP
302
298
341
0.147
0.147
0.150
6.07
6.63
6.57
30.7
24.6
33.5
1.13
1.45
1.33
M
353
467
507
0.147
0.150
0.150
5.81
5.12
5.88
40.8
32.5
39.2
1.54
1.35
2.03
C
436
522
385
0.140
0.133
0.143
5.48
5.96
5.22
28.8
26.6
23.8
1.99
1.57
1.49
FLSD(0.05)=114.0
How to Cite this Article: Dr.
FLSD(0.05) =0.024
FLSD(0.05)= 1.569
FLSD(0.05)=12.16
FLSD(0.05) =0.759
Roseta C Eneje, C. J. Nwosu, “Cow Dung and Cassava Peel Effect on Selected Soil Nutrient Indices and Germination of Maize” Science
Journal of Agricultural Research & Management, Volume 2012, Article ID sjarm-152, 6 Pages, 2012. doi: 10.7237/sjarm/152
Science Journal of Agricultural Research & Management (ISSN:2276-8572)
Page 6
Table 4: Spearman rank correlation matrix of selected parameters
Avail P
1.000
BS
-0.191
1000
Ca
-0.422
0.189
1000
EA
-0.335
0.064
0.286
1000
EC
0.265
-0.048
-0.055
-0.083
1000
ECEC
-0.438
0.172
0.993
0.327
-0.050
1000
K
-0.09
-0.234
0.303
0.032
0.480
0.305
1000
Mg
-0.289
0.093
0.915
0.259
-0.077
0.933
0.201
1000
N
-0.12
0.189
0.087
-0.164
-0.018
0.094
0.039
0.100
1000
Na
0.092
-0.211
0.006
0.081
0.650
0.017
0.694
-0.062
-0.200
1000
OC
-0.105
0.134
0.124
-0.091
0.067
0.130
0.096
0.135
0.957
-0.098
1000
pH
0.194
-0.438
-0.032
0.234
0.517
-0.023
0.406
0.001
-0.469
0.592
-0.354
1000
Avail P
BS
Ca
EA
EC
ECEC
K
Mg
N
Na
OC
pH
Table 5: Correlation parameter of percent seed germination and selected nutrient indices
X
Y
R
r2
p-value
%OC
% germination
0.0664
0.0044
0.721
Avail. P
% germination
-0.3012
0.0907
0.064
N-mineralization
% germination
0.05367
0.0029
0.775
How to Cite this Article: Dr.
.
Roseta C Eneje, C. J. Nwosu, “Cow Dung and Cassava Peel Effect on Selected Soil Nutrient Indices and Germination of Maize” Science
Journal of Agricultural Research & Management, Volume 2012, Article ID sjarm-152, 6 Pages, 2012. doi: 10.7237/sjarm/152