Abstract:
A two-year study on the effect of organic residue decomposition on plantain (Musa spp) growth and soil health was conducted at the Teaching and Research Farm of the Federal University of Technology, Akure Ondo State, Nigeria between July 2017 to August 2018. The field study was made up of six treatments, namely Gliricidia sepium prunnings, Tithonia diversifolia fallow mulch, Plantain pseudo stem, Pennisetum purpureum, Tectona grandis leaf mulch applied at 5 t ha-1 and control and arranged in a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replications. Plant growth parameters such as plant height, number of leaves, leaf area, and stem girth and soil health indicators, viz Total N, available P, exchangeable K, Ca, Mg, CEC, soil organic carbon (SOC) bacterial and fungal population, bulk density, total porosity and water holding capacity (WHC). The results were analyzed by ANOVA and turkey’s test was used to separate the means. The experimental results showed that application of organic residues improved the following soil health indicators- SOC, total N, available P, exchangeable K, Ca and Mg, CEC, Soil bacteria, yeast and fungi population. The field experiment showed that application of Tectona grandis had significantly higher values for plant height, number of leaves, stem girth, and leaf area after 15 weeks of evaluation in both 2017 and 2018 cropping season than other organic residues. The highest plant growth is 141.3 cm 136.9 cm respectively was recorded by Tectona grandis, this may be attributed to its high nutrient composition which was available for plant uptake upon decomposition. The incorporation of Tithonia and Gliricidia as organic materials contributed most to improved soil health, this indicates that these organic residue incorporated into the soil can help in sustainable use of land for soil fertility, crop production and improved soil health.
