Comparative Effect of Rice Husk Compost and Urea on Soil Chemical Properties, Growth and Yield of Fluted Pumpkin (Telfairiaoccidentalis) in Akanuibiam Federal Polytechnic, Unwana, Afikpo, Ebonyi State, Nigeria

Abstract

A pot experiment was conducted at the Green House of AkanuIbiam federal Polytechnic, Unwana, Afikpo, Ebonyi State of Nigeria, to investigate the effect of rice husk compost(RHC) and urea  on soil nutrient status indices such as soil pH, organic carbon, total nitrogen, available phosphorus, effective cation exchange capacity and growth and yield of fluted pumpkin(Telfairiaoccidentalis). Soil samples were collected from 0-20cm depth from the polytechnic multi-purpose farm and the treatments comprised of three rates of RHC (0, 1, and 2t/ha) and three rates of urea (0, 1, and 2t/ha) arranged factorially in completely randomized design (CRD) with three replications. Results showed that both fertilizer materials influenced the soil chemical properties (P<0.05) relative to control and the influence on these properties increased as the rate of application increased. RHC was more effective in improving soil pH, available P, organic C, and ECEC compared to the urea alone, while the application of urea as a lone treatment showed greater improvement on the total N compared to the RHC. With the exception of pH in salt, exchangeable bases and ECEC, all treatments both as lone or combined showed significant difference (P<0.05) in influencing all the soil chemical properties. Similarly, the application of both fertilizer materials significantly improved both the growth and marketable yield parameters, with the combined treatments showing greater effect than the lone treatments. At (P<0.05), the treatments were statistically significant in improving both the growth and yield parameters measured.