A field experiment was conducted to examine the effect of plant spacing on grain and fodder yield of four cowpeas varieties. Four cowpea varieties i.e. Asetenapa, Asomdwe, Hewale and Videza were sown with three plant spacing i.e. 30 x 15 cm, 45 x 15 cm and 60 x 15 cm at Samboligo in the Bongo District of the Upper East of Ghana. The experiment was laid in randomized complete block with four replicates in factorial fashion. Cowpea variety and plant spacing significantly influenced grain yield, 1000 seed weight, nodules per plant and plant height. Plant spacing had no significant effect on stem girth, pods per plant, pod length and seed per pods. Variety ‘Hewale’ produced the highest grain yield of 991.3 kg ha-1 while Asetenapa produced the highest fodder yield of 1025.5 kg ha-1. Interactive effect between Asomdwe and 45 x 15 cm had the highest 1000 seed weight (170.6 g) while Asetenapa and 30 x 15 cm produced the highest grain yield (1072.9 kg ha-1). Variety ‘Hewale’ is recommended for commercial grain production while Asetenapa for fodder production. Asetenapa and 30 x 15 cm combination is recommended for commercial grain production.
Rhizobia inoculation with effective strains is an environmentally friendly approach for enhancing nodulation and yield of legumes. To obtain an ideal strain for inoculant production, the strain's performance must be matched to the environmental conditions. A 2 × 9 cross-factorial experiment laid in a randomized complete block design with three replications on farmers' fields in the northern part of Ghana was set up to evaluate the rhizobia's performance. The factors were groundnut varieties (Chinese and Samnut 22) and nine strains consisting of five native rhizobia (KNUST 1001, 1002, 1003, 1032, and 1031), two commercial strains (Biofix and BR3267), and a positive (N+) and absolute control (N–). In addition, the population of the strains was assessed after a cropping season. The strains' performance on groundnut was location and variety dependent. At Cheshegu, KNUST 1031 and 1002 significantly increased seed yield of the Chinese variety compared to other strains; however, KNUST 1031 elicited a 24% yield increase while KNUST 1002 caused a 16% yield increase over the control. Strain KNUST 1031 increased the seed yield of the Chinese variety by 24% while KNUST 1002 increased the seed yield of Samnut by 16%. Only KNUST 1002 elicited a significant seed yield increase in Samnut 22 at Cheshegu. At Binduri, strain KNUST 1003 significantly increased the seed yield of the Chinese variety by 35% relative to the control. Samnut 22 did not show a clear preference for any of the strains. The Chinese variety did not show a clear response to the strains at Tanina. However, Samnut 22 responded to KNUST 1002 as it increased seed yield by 45% relative to the control. On average, the seed yield at Tanina (846.15 kg ha−1) was less than the seed yield recorded at Binduri (1,077.66 kg ha−1) and Cheshegu (1,502.78 kg ha−1). Inoculation with strains KNUST 1002, 1003, and 1031 was all profitable under the current experimental conditions as they recorded value cost ratios (VCRs) above the threshold of 3–4. The study has shown that strains KNUST 1002, 1003, and 1031 have the potential to be used in inoculant formulation to increase groundnut production and enhance the income of smallholder groundnut farmers in northern Ghana.
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