SUSTAINABLE OKRA (ABELMOSCHUS ESCULENTUS L.) PRODUCTIVITY AS INFLUENCED BY FORTIFICATION OF GOAT MANURE WITH RICE HUSK ASH IN NORTHERN GUINEA SAVANNA ECOLOGY OF NIGERIA

Abstract

To assess the agronomic effects of sustainable okra production as impacted by goat manure (GM) and rice husk ash (RHA) on a community-based demonstration farm in Gombe State, field trials were carried out during the wet seasons of 2017 and 2018. The trails consisted of four levels of GM and RHA, each measuring 0.0, 5.0, 7.5, and 10.0 t ha-1 which were used on Kwadon's local cultivar of okra in a Randomized complete block design (RCBD) replicated four times. Findings revealed that days to 50% emergence and establishment count were not significantly (P>0.05) influenced by the application of GM and RHA, regardless of rates of application. Other growth-related indices were significantly (P<0.05) higher due to GM, such as plant height at 4, 5, and 6 WAS, number of leaves plant-1 at 4 WAS, and pod diameter. On the other hand, RHA significantly (P<0.05) increased plant height, the number of leaves plant-1 at 5 and 6 WAS, leaf area, shortened days to 50% flowering, and the number of pods plant-1 across the sampling periods and seasons. Similar to this, due to adequate mineralization of organic material through time and space, fresh okra's marketable weight increased in the 2018 season compared to the previous year. Thus, the application of 10.0 t ha-1 of both GM and RHA can be adopted in the production of okra in the study area to reduce greenhouse gas emissions resulting from the use of inorganic agrochemical inputs.

Keywords

• fortification
• goat manure
• growth
• okra
• rice husk ash
• yield characters.