Field Evaluation of Foliar Blend Micronutrient Fertilizer on Cotton (Gossypium hirsutum) Production in Katsina State, Nigeria

Abstract

During the 2013 and 2014 cropping season, field experiments were conducted to evaluate the effect of combined application of NPK fertilizer and FoliarBlend micronutrient application on yield and growth of Cotton at Funtua (longitude 07° 19’E, latitude 11° 32’N), in Katsina State, Nigeria. This study was done as a randomized complete block design with three replications. The treatments were T1 (500 mls of FoliarBlend in 20 litres of water); T2 (20 kg NPK/ha + 500 mls of FoliarBlend in 20 litres of water); T3 (40 kg NPK/ha + 500 mls of FoliarBlend in 20 litres of water); T4 (60 kg NPK/ha + 500 mls of FoliarBlend in 20 litres of water) and control. Soil samples were collected for the determination of chemical and physical properties before planting. Data on growth parameters (plant height, number of leaves, number of nodes, & number of branches) and yield parameters (number of bolls & yield) were also collected and subjected to 2 ways Analyses of Variance (ANOVA) and means separated with Least Significant Difference(LSD) at P=0.05. The study revealed that during wet season of 2013 cropping system, the results from the field evaluations showed that combined application rate of 40 kg NPK/ha + 500 mls of FoliarBlend in 20 litres of water produced the highest number of leaves (36), plant height (76 cm), number of branches (21), and number of nodes (30), compared to the least value of 30, 59.6 cm, 18, and 21 respectively obtained in the control at funtua location. The study also revealed that application rate of 60 kg NPK/ha + 500 mls of FoliarBlend in 20 litres of water had the highest number of bolls (19) and yield (5.2 t/ha) compared to the least values of 13, and 2.13 t/ha obtained respectively in the control at funtua site. Similarly in the 2014 dry season, the same trend as in the 2013 was obtained with the application rate of 60 kg NPK/ha + 500 mls of FoliarBlend in 20 litres of water, given the   highest number of bolls (24) and yield (6.1 t/ha) compared to the least values of 15 and 2.75 t/ha obtained respectively in the control at funtua site. Considering the overall result, it can be concluded that combined application rate of 40 kg NPK/ha + 500 mls of FoliarBlend in 20 litres performed best with the highest values on the growth parameters, and while 60 kg NPK/ha + 500 mls of FoliarBlend in 20 litres gave the highest yield and yield parameters than the sole application of either NPK or FoliarBlend.