Impact of Nutrient Profiles in Soils Amended Using Composts and Nano-Gel Water Accumulator for the Cultivation of Amaranthus Spinosus Grown in Them

Abstract

The depletion of minerals in agricultural soils through subsistence farming has been a major food security challenge in many parts of the world. To curtail this problem, farmers use inorganic fertilizer to boost soil fertility even though it poses a lot of environmental challenges. In this research, an alternative route to soil nutrient amendment was explored via the use of compost and nano-gel water accumulator for blending different soil samples derived from rock side soil and spent farm soils blended in different ratios of 1:0, 1:1, 1:2, and 2:1using a suitable potting media for the greenhouse production of A. spinosus L. Physicochemical values, mineral, and heavy metals concentration were evaluated on the soil and compost samples while mineral, proximate, anti-nutrients and vitamins compositions were analyzed on A. spinosus L. grown on the soils. Data obtained were analyzed using analysis of variance (ANOVA) at a 95% confidence limit using SPSS 20.0 software. The properties of the prepared compost (PC) and commercial compost (CC) varied significantly (P

Keywords

• alfisols
• amaranthus spinosus l
• amended soil
• compost
• food security
• nano-gel water accumulator