Impact of Variety and Variable Rates of Cow Dung on Growth Characters of Groundnut in Abraka, Nigeria

Abstract

A study was carried out in Teaching and Research Farm of Delta State, Abraka in 2022 and repeated in 2023 farming seasons to assess the impact of variety and variable rates of cow dung on growth characters of groundnut in Abraka, Nigeria. It was a 2 x 5 factorial experiment in randomized complete block design with three replications. Seven parameters were investigated to achieve the objectives of the study, including initial soil physico-chemical properties of the experimental site before planting, percentage emergence of the varieties after 10 days of planting based on different rates of cow dung applied, plant height, number of branches per stand, number of leaves per stand, leaf area and chemical properties of the cow dung used for the study. The results of the study showed that Samnut-21 was superior in all the parameters assessed, while manure application rate of 20 tha-1 was outstanding in performance of the growth characters. It was therefore recommended that farmers in the study area adopt Samnut-21 and 20 tha-1 of cow dung for groundnut production in Abraka, Delta State, Nigeria.