Dwarf coconut seedlings were raised in polybags under four mulching treatments (no mulch, coconut husk, oil palm bunch refuse and grass) and two weeding regimes (designated/ Wo and Wl) in the nursery. Weeding was done once every month in Wl plots whilst Wo plots were left unweeded. Weed competition reduced the growth of coconut seedlings a great deal and the unweeded and unmulched plants were not vigorous enough for transplanting. Weeds reduced dry matter yield of leaves, stem and roots in unmulched plots by 61, 46 and 44% respectively. Mulching was beneficial and reduced competitive effects of weeds. Mulch ing increased plant height, girth and dry matter yield. At harvest, leaves formed the greatest proportion of the dry matter; the mean being 171.6 g compared with 20.8 and 43.2 g for stem and roots respectively. Soil temperatures were only moderately reduced by mulching. Coconut husk suppressed weeds the most but oil palm bunch refuse increased K content of soil more than any other mulch material.
Somaclonal variation refers to any phenotypic or genotypic modifications that arise from in vitro culture. In the oil palm, it is characterized by fruit mantling and abnormal vegetative growth. Tissue culture remains the only means of micro propagation of oil palm as its biological characteristics do not allow for vegetative propagation by conventional means. The early success of plantlets production inspired many oil palm organizations to explore in vitro propagation technique. Though oil palm tissue culture is already well established, it is still faced with many challenges. Prominent among them is somaclonal variation which was first reported in 1986. They are only detectable when the palms start flowering; that is, after two to three years in the field. It has not been possible to fully eliminate or circumvent floral abnormality in the oil palm. However, the adoption of several measures such as reducing hormone level, avoiding fast growing callus and, reducing culture period, have reduced the problem to manageable levels of < 5%. Possible causes and factors influencing somaclonal variation in the oil palm are discussed.
Survey of dumpsite plant composition, assessment of rhizosphere microorganisms and growth performance of Sphenostylis stenocarpa grown on two dumpsite (CAPITOL and NITEL ROAD) soils in Benin City was investigated. Control treatment was top soil. A total of 9 and 30 flora were observed at the CAPITOL and NITEL ROAD dumpsites respectively. Analysis of the rhizosphere soils of the plants grown in dumpsite soils at different amendments showed a total heterotrophic bacterial count ranging from 1.57 x 10 4 to 4.18 x 10 4 cfu/g and a total heterotrophic fungal count in the various rhizosphere soils ranged from 5.05 x 10 3 to 1.68 x 10 4 cfu/g. The bacterial isolates from the rhizosphere soil samples were Arthrobacter sp., Bacillus sp, Pseudomonas sp., Escherichia coli, Enterobacter sp., Klebsiella sp., Micrococcus sp. and Staphylococcus sp. The fungal isolates were Aspergillus sp, Mucor sp, Fusarium sp, Penicillium sp, Trichoderma sp. and Saccharomyces sp. Bacillus sp., Pseudomonas sp., Penicillium sp. and Aspergillus sp. Aspergillus sp. 100 % (present in all dumpsite soils analyzed) had the highest frequency of occurrence amongst the isolates.Percentage seedling emergence was significantly reduced from 86.67± 13.33 % -100.00 ± 0.00 % in control (top) soil to 60.00 ± 0.00 % to 93.33 ± 6.67 % in CAPITOL dumpsite soil. Shoot height at 6 weeks after planting (WAP) was significantly (p < 0.05) increased from 78.33± 18.53 cm in the control soil through 131.50 ± 18.79 cm in the CAPITOL dumpsite soil to 186.33 ± 13.68 cm in NITEL road dumpsite soil, all without amendment. Number of leaves at 6 WAP increased on addition of FYM in both soil types. Chlorophyll content was not significantly different (p > 0.05) from control plants. Leaf area in both dumpsite soils was found to be significantly different (p < 0.05) from the control soil but leaf area increased on addition and increase in amendment in both soil types. In all parameters observed, it was noted that the control treatment did better than the plants grown in the dumpsite soils with increased amendment.Values represent mean ± standard error of six determinations. Means with same alphabets as control within the same row do not differ significantly (p>0.05) from the control. Means with same alphabetical letters within the same row do not differ significantly (p>0.05) from each other. FYM = Farm Yard Manure.
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