Growth and Yield of Radish (Raphanus sativus L.) as Influenced by Different Levels of Kalli Organic Fertilizer on the Jos Plateau

Abstract

Aims: To determine the effect of Kalli organic fertilizer on the growth and yield of radish.
 Study Design: The experimental design used for this study was a Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) consisting of four (4) treatments (0, 400, 500 and 600 kgha-1) which were replicated four (4) times.
 Place and Duration of the Study: The experiment was conducted at Federal College of Forestry Jos, Plateau State located in the North Central part of Nigeria between September – October, 2018.
 Methods: Soil samples were collected and analysed. Agronomic practices such as land preparation, planting, fertilizer application, weeding and harvesting were also carried out. The data was collected on plant height, number of leaves, leaf area, number of roots, length of roots, diameter of roots, root weight and root yield. Data collected was analysed using Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) with Minitab 23 statistical package at 5% level of probability and where significance was determined Duncan Multiple Range Test (DMRT) was used to separate the means.
 Results: The findings from this research work revealed that there was no significant effect of Kalli organic fertilizer on the plant height, number of leaves. But the leaf area was found to be significant (p=0.05) at 8WAP with the application of 600 kgha-1 recording the largest (143.30 cm2) leaf. The number of roots, length of roots, weight of root and total yield was found to be significant (P=0.05) on the application of different levels of Kalli organic fertilizer. The application of 600 kgha-1 produced the highest number (35.50) of radish roots, length (24.83 cm) of radish roots, weight (7.20 kg) of radish and total yield (18000 kgha-1) of Radish.
 Conclusion: Based on this research study it could be concluded that the application of Kalli (600 kgha-1) organic fertilizer significantly increased the yield of Radish. It is therefore recommended that organic fertilizer can be applied for optimum production of Radish.