THE EFFECTS OF NITROGEN AND PLANT POPULATION ON THE GROWTH AND YIELD OF VEGETABLE AMARANTH (Amaranthus cruentus. L.)
THE EFFECTS OF NITROGEN AND PLANT POPULATION ON THE GROWTH AND YIELD OF VEGETABLE AMARANTH (Amaranthus cruentus. L.)
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Date
1988-08
Authors
AUWALU, BINDAWA MANSUR
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Abstract
A field experiment was conducted during the wet
and dry seasons of 1987 at Samaru, Zaria in northern
Guinea Savanna of Nigeria to study the effects of nitrogen
and plant population en the growth and yield of vegetable
amaranth (Amaranthus cruentus, L.). The treatments
consisted of four N levels (0.0, 45.0, 90.0 and 180.0
kg N/ha) and five plant populations (9, 16, 25, 49 and
100 plants/m ) laid out in a randomized complete block
design with four replications.
Nitrogen application increased plant height, leaf
area, shoot dry weight and length of harvested branches
significantly over the control. Application of 180 kg
N/ha increased marketable, edible and total dry matter
yield by 19.5, 20.0 and 17.8 percent, respectively over
the control. Percent protein content of the edible yield
was significantly increased by N application.
Number of leaves, leaf area, shoot dry weight,
number and length of harvested branches per plant as well
as percent stand court at harvest were significantly
decreased by increase in plant population. Plant height
however, increased significantly with increase in plant
population.
Marketable, edible and total dry matter yields
of vegetable amaranth increased significantly with
increase in plant population.
In terms of marketable, edible and total dry
matter yields, the dry season crop out-yielded the
wet season crop by 59.0, 58.8 and 58.1, respectively
Description
A Thesis submitted to the Post-graduate School,
Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria
In Partial FulfilLment of the requirements for the
Degree of Master of Science in Agronomy
DEPARTMENT OF AGRONOMY
FACULTY OF AGRICULTURE
AHMADU BELLO UNIVERSITY
ZARIA, NIGERIA
AUGUST 1988.
Keywords
EFFECTS,, NITROGEN,, PLANT,, POPULATION,, GROWTH,, YIELD,, VEGETABLE,, AMARANTH, (Amaranthus cruentus. L.)