Efficacy of Five Different Growth Media on Seedling Emergence and Juvenile Phenology of Monodora myristica (African nutmeg, Ehuru) in the Nursery

Abstract

The study investigated the efficacy of five (5) different growth media on seedling emergence and juvenile phenology of Monodora myristica in the nursery. The growth media were sawdust only, equal mixture of topsoil and sawdust (50:50) by volume, topsoil only, standard nursery soil mixture (3:2:1 ratio) and topsoil arranged in-depth with sawdust (50:50) by volume. All the growth media were bagged in the standard perforated (perforated to allow for water drainage) nursery polybags of 27 cm × 25 cm and laid flat the thickness of 1mm. The polybags each containing 3 stands of Monodora myristica were arranged in a cluster of bags per treatment and replicated three times. Data on percentage seedling emergence, number of leaves, plant height and leaf area at 4, 6 and 8 weeks after planting were collected. The analysis of variance was carried out using Genestat. The results showed that Monodora myristica seeds sown in sawdust emerged significantly (P<0.05) early. Juvenile growth was significantly enhanced by standard nursery soil mixture (3:2:1) and topsoil in-depth with sawdust arrangements. The seedling vigour further facilitated field establishment of M. myristica at the Crop Genetic Resource Conservation Centre, Federal University of Technology Owerri. Monitoring and evaluation of the field growth pattern of Monodora myristica is in progress.