Direct and Residual Effects of Animal Manures on Soil Properties and Yield Components of Pepper (Capsicum annum L.) in an Ultisol of Southeast Nigeria

Abstract

One of the ways of increasing soil nutrients and crop yield is by applying fertilizer which could be from inorganic or organic sources. Pot experiment was conducted at the screen house of the Teaching and Research Farm of Faculty of Agriculture, Akwa Ibom State University, Nigeria from March through October, 2015. The experiment was designed to assess the direct and residual effects of different types of animal manures on soil properties and yield of pepper. There were four animal manure sources (pig, poultry, goat, rabbit), each applied at 20 t/ha and a control (no amendment). The pots containing each 10 kg of soil were arranged in a completely randomized design with three replications. Six weeks old pepper seedlings were transplanted from the nursery to the potted soil. After the first planting, pepper seedlings were replanted (second planting) in each of the previously treated soils with no additional amendment. Results obtained showed that treatments applied significantly (P ≤ 0.05) increased soil pH, organic matter, total N, available P, exchangeable Ca, Mg, ECEC and base saturation compared with control. Regardless of amendment, soil pH, available P, exchangeable bases, ECEC and base saturation decreased with residual time while organic matter and total N increased with residual time. Growth data of pepper collected at 4, 6, 8, and 10 weeks after transplanting (WAT) were significant (P ≤ 0.05) compared with control in both planting. The highest fruit weights of 138.61 and 105.10 g/plant obtained from poultry manure treated plants in the first and residual planting, respectively were not significantly (P ≥ 0.05) higher than the fruit weights of 109.59 and 95.00 g/plant obtained from pig manure treated plants in the first and residual planting. Therefore, these animal manures are capable of sustaining the productivity of pepper in an acidic Ultisol of Akwa Ibom State.