PERFORMANCE OF VARYING RATES OF NEEM COMPOST ON SESAME (Sesamum indicum Linn)

Abstract

Application of organic residues to soils as amendment is a common agronomic practice, especially nowadays that the awareness on the needs for organic agriculture in the tropics is meaningfully increasing. However, there is dearth of information about the best form or nature of applying these phyto-residues which will ensure maximum utilization of their nutrients by crop plants. Field experiment was conducted during the rainy season of 2022 at the experimental plot, behind Bee-Hall, Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso to evaluate the performance of varying rates of neem compost on Sesame (Sesamum indicum L.) Six fertilizer treatments introduced were; T0 =(Zero application of fertilizer material) T1 = 20 tons/ha, T2 = 40 tons/ha, T3 = 60 tons/ha, T4 = 80 tons/ha, T5 = 100 tons/ha. The trial was arranged in Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) replicated three times. Data were collected on the following parameters:
plant heights, numbers of leaves, numbers of branches, stem girths, root fresh weights, root dry weights, shoot fresh weights, shoot dry weights and subjected to Analysis of Variance (ANOVA). Means were separated using Duncan Multiple Range Test (DMRT), at 5% level of probability (SAS, 2019). Application of T4 (6tons/ha) with enhanced the growth with the highest mean value of (98.60) and not significantly difference from T1 (75.50), T4 (69.80), and T5 (67.27) but significantly difference from T2 (27.40) and T0 (25.27) which has the least mean value across all the parameters measured. Therefore, application of T4 (6tons/ha) of Neem compost is hereby recommended as optimum, for improved performance of Sesame in the study area.