Nutrient management in maize-sesame intercropping system

Abstract

Two field experiments were conducted in early cropping season of 2015 at the Teaching and Research Farm, Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso, Nigeria and at Onitinrin village, about 15 kilometres away, to evaluate the effect of organic, inorganic fertilizer and their combinations on the growth and yield performance of maize and sesame intercrop and to determine the appropriate combination rates of organic-based fertilizer and inorganic fertilizer for sustainable high crop yields of maize and sesame intercrop grown in the Sothern Guinea Savannah Agro-ecological Zone of Nigeria. The treatments consisted of different percentages of tithonia compost and inorganic fertilizer applied in combinations or alone, laid out in a randomized complete block design and replicated three times. Generally, significantly higher maize yield was obtained in treated plots than control. Sesame yield from T3-50 kg N/ha (from urea fertilizer)+197.5 kg N/ha (from tithonia compost) and T5-75 kg N/ha (from urea fertilizer)+98.75 kg N/ha (from tithonia compost) applied plots was significantly higher (P<0.05) than the others in Onitinrin village. For maize/sesame intercrop at Teaching and Research Farm, any of the fertilizer treatment combinations can be applied.