Nutrient Foraging Ability of Selected Local Peanut (Arachis hypogaea) Varieties under Drought Stress

Abstract

Background: Peanuts (Arachis hypogaea L.) are an important oleaginous food, widely cultivated in tropical and semiarid regions, where drought is one of the most limiting factors for production. Nutrient foraging is the ability of plants to efficiently explore and exploit the soil environment in order to acquire essential nutrients for their growth and development. Aim: This study aimed to investigate the nutrient foraging ability of some peanut varieties under drought conditions. Methods: The study was carried out at the Screen-house of the Department of Biological Sciences at Yelwa Campus of Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University; Bauchi State, Nigeria, between August-September, 2024. The study was conducted as a complete randomised design with three replicates. A 4x3 factorial design; the 4 varieties of peanut were subjected to 3 different water regimens (5 days, 10 days and 15 days interval with a control which received a regular watering). Nutrients analysed include: K, Na, Ca, Cu, Mn, Fe and Zn. Descriptive analysis was used to calculate the means and percentage of the varieties. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to compare the means of the growth, yield and phenotypic parameters. Duncan’s Multiple Range Test (DMTR) was used to separate the means where significant. Results: Based on the variation in terms of physiological susceptibility among the varieties, Bahausa had the highest plant height (25.7cm), longest leaves (3.89cm) and most  leaves (21) while Yar Dakar and Kampala had shorter plants, shorter leaves and fewer leaves. This is clearly indicates that Bahausa appears least physiologically susceptible to drought, as it maintains growth despite the stress. Yar Dakar and Kampala, with significantly lower values (especially in leaf traits), show higher physiological susceptibility, which means the drought stress more severely disrupted their growth processes. Jaye is intermediate in performance, slightly more susceptible than Bahausa, but less than Kampala and Yar Dakar. The different letters (a,b,c) next to the mean value indicate statistically significant differences at p≤ 0.05. These differences confirm that the peanut varieties have genetically inherited traits affecting their growth rates, leaf size, and ability to produce foliage under drought. Conclusion: The effects of drought stress on the overall growth of the peanut varieties were not apparent until at the later stage of growth and Bahausa variety accompanied by Jaye were least affected. The same cannot be said for the effect of drought on the overall yield of peanut varieties, since Kampala variety excelled above all varieties, with Yar Dakar variety following in its lead. Those peanut varieties with enhanced nutrient foraging ability under drought conditions were Bahausa and Kampala, respectively.