Growth Responses of Okra (<i>Albemoschus esculentus)</i> and Jute Mallow (<i>Corchorus oitorius)</i> to Water Stress and Non-Water Stress Conditions

Abstract

Water stress is one of the abiotic stress factors that affect establishment, growth and yield of crop. Therefore, a screen house study was carried out to determine the effect of water stress on growth and yield of Okra and Jute mallow. 7 litre capacity each bucket was filled with 10 kg of soil and arranged in a completely randomized design with three replicates. There were four irrigation regimes based on field capacity; 100% FC (control), 75% FC, 50% FC, and 25% FC Seeds from local source were sown at the rate of three seeds per pot and later thinned to two seedlings per pot two weeks after sowing (WAS). Data on growth parameters; plant height, stem girth and number of leaves were collected at two week interval up to 10 WAS while total fruit yield and biomass yield, for okra and jute mallow respectively, were determined at harvest . Data collected were subjected to analysis of variance (ANOVA) and the means were separated using least significant difference at p<0.05. Okra growth and fruit yield were significantly (p<0.05) affected by field capacities; 75% FC produced significantly (p<0.05) tallest plant at 10 WAS (25.3 cm) while 25% FC gave shortest plant height (13.9 cm). Number of leaves at 10 WAS followed similar trend as plant height. Irrigation regimes did not significantly (p<0.05) affect fruit yield however, 75% FC recorded highest fruit yield than other field capacities. At 10 WAS, jute mallow plant height under 100, 75 and 50% FC were significantly (p<0.05) tallest height than at 25% FC. Stem girth followed the same trend as plant height. However, at 10 WAS, 75% FC produced significantly (p<0.05) higher number of leaves and biomass yield than other treatments. It could be concluded from the study that 75 % FC was best for growth, fruit yield and biomass yield of okra and jute mallow production.