Sandy Soil Improvement Using Organic Materials and Mineral Fertilizer on the Yield and Quality of Jute Plant (Corchorus Olitorius)

Abstract

Sandy soils are generally in need of improvement of their nutrient status. An open field pot experiment was conducted at the Gateway Fertilizer Plant, Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria to evaluate the effect of various organic amendments (poultry manure, cow dung), organo-mineral and inorganic fertilizer on physico-chemical properties of sandy soil and the performance of Corchorus grown on it.Four levels of poultry manure (PM), cow dung (CD), Gateway fertilizer (GF) and organo-mineral fertilizer (OMF), at the rate of 0, 10, 20, and 30 tonnes/ha and NPK at 0, 120, 200 and 250 kg were applied. Pre-treated Corchorus seeds were planted and different agronomic data collected at pre-determined days after planting.Results obtained indicated significant differences (p < 0.05) between the treatments and yield components. PM gave the best significant value for the leaf height, leaf length and stem girth. Soil chemical properties (pH, nitrogen, acidity, phosphorus, and organic carbon content) were greatly influenced by the organic amendments as follows: PM at 10 tonnes/ha, CD at 20 tonnes/ha, GF at 20 tonnes/ha, OMF at 30 tonnes/ha and NPK at 200kg/ha.From the result of the experiment, PM at 10 tonnes/ha showed the overall best performance for Corchorus, and the trend for all amendments was: PM 10 tonnes/ha > CD 20 tonnes/ha > GF 20 tonnes/ha > OMF 20 tonnes/ha > NPK 250 kg/ha on the sandy soil. The use of organic materials in improving sandy soil to promote optimum crop growth and yield of Corchorus is recommended. PM at 10 tonnes/ha, CD and GF at 20 tonnes/ha should be recommended as source of improving sandy soil if optimum production of Corchorus is desired.