GROWTH, FRUIT YIELD AND QUALITY RESPONSES OF TWO VARIETIES OF TOMATO (LYCOPERSICUM ESCULENTUM (L.) TO NITROGEN SOURCES AND ORGANIC MULCHES AT KADAWA, KANO STATE, NIGERIA

ABSTRACT

Three field trials were conducted in the dry season of 2016, 2017 and 2018 at the Irrigation Research Farm of Institute for Agricultural Research, Kadawa (11039‟ N 080‟ 027‟E, 500 m above sea level) located in the Sudan savanna ecological zone of Nigeria, to study the growth, fruit yield and quality responses of two irrigated varieties of tomato (Lycopersicum esculentum (L.) to nitrogen sources and organic mulches. Treatments consisted of two tomato varieties (UC82B and Rio Grande), two organic mulches (rice straw and sugar-cane peels) at recommended rates 5.5 t ha-1 and 11.0 t ha-1 (4 cm thick) respectively and a control (No mulch), and three nitrogen sources (mineral fertilizer, poultry droppings and mineral fertilizer + poultry droppings) at recommended rate of 90 kg N ha-1 with a control (No application). Varieties and nitrogen sources were assigned to the main plots while sugar-cane peels mulch was assigned to the sub plots and replicated three times. Results showed that Rio-Grande variety produced taller plants, wider canopy, high relative growth rate, net assimilation rate, low evapo-transpiration rate, longer days to 50% flowering and higher fruits yield of 57.89 % and marketable yield of 63.54 % over UC82B. Result from quality analysis has shown that the two varieties did not differ significantly (P≤0.05) from each other in all the quality traits evaluated. Tomato fruit qualities (appearance, decay, shelf life) as well as nutritional qualities were significantly enhanced by nitrogen sourced from organic sources than the unfertilised plots (control) while inorganic nitrogen sources contributed the least. Application of nitrogen sources showed that mineral fertilizer + poultry droppings showed superiority over poultry droppings and mineral fertilizer but did not differ significantly in their effect on growth and  development.    The  growth  and  yield  characters  were significantly enhanced  by organic  mulching  materials  with  rice  straw  and  sugar  cane  peels  showing  a  non significant difference compared to un-mulched plots. However, interaction of mineral fertilizer + poultry droppings in combination with any of the variety of tomato was significantly higher (P≤0.05) in enhancement of most of the growth and yield character but  did  not  differ  significantly  with  poultry  droppings  and  mineral  fertilizer  in combination with any of the organic mulching materials with both varieties of tomato. Results from correlation and path analysis have shown that number of leaves gave the highest direct contributions in 2016 and 2017 while plant height gave the highest direct contribution in 2018. However, the highest individual percentage contribution was by plant height while the highest combined percentage contribution was by plant height via leaf area index. Cultural techniques capable of prompting the enhancement of characters such as number of leaves, canopy spread, plant dry weight and plant height should be considered with number of leaves playing the most important role and therefore should be given prominence. Cost and return analysis has indicated that poultry droppings (2.88 t ha-2) using sugar-cane peels mulch (11.0 t ha-1) with Rio-Grande gave the highest gross margin. Based on the results obtained from this study it can be concluded that Rio- Grande was superior to UC82B for higher fruit yield while for higher fruit quality any of the variety could be use. Poultry droppings at recommended rate (2.88 t ha-2) should be applied for increased growth, fruit yield and quality of tomato on sustainable bases. Sugar-cane peels mulch (11.0 t ha-1) is recommended as a suitable replacement to rice straw mulch.

CHAPTER ONE

1.0       INTRODUCTION

1.1       Background to the Study

According to Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO, 2016), world production of tomato  amounts  to  177,042,359  tonnes  with  China  as  the  largest  producer  with 56,423,811 tonnes followed by India with 18,399,000 tonnes and United States with 13,038,410 tonnes (FAO, 2016). In Africa, Egypt is the highest producer of tomato with 7,943,285 tonnes followed by Nigeria with 2,243,228 tonnes and occupying thirteenth position in the world (FAO, 2016). In general, average world yield of tomato as at 2015 was 33.99 t ha-1 with 4.8 million hectares of land dedicated to tomato production (FAO, 2015). The yield potential of tomato has been reported to range from 60 to 100 t ha-1 (Varela et al., 2003; Bok et al., 2006). However, the productivity of tomatoes in Nigeria is between 7 – 20 t ha-1 which is below the potential yield of the crop.

Nigeria ranks 13th on the global tomato production scale and accounts for 10.79 % of Africa‟s and 1.2 % of total world production of tomato. However, Kano State ranks top in the country with dry season cultivation of over 30,000 hectares of irrigated tomato in the Kano River Irrigation Project (KRIP) covering Kura, Bunkure, and Garun Malam Local Government Areas in the State (Anon, 2013). Savanna ecological zone is predominantly a tomato growing region in Nigeria. According to Ibrahim (1999), a relatively high yield of up to 30 t ha-1  is obtainable in the region (Sudan ecology) due to favourable weather conditions during the dry season when temperature is about 25 o C and humidity ranges from 50 to 70 %. Yield of tomato is generally low in Nigeria, with average yield of 20 t ha-1 in the northern part, while in the southern and eastern parts average yield is 10 t ha-1 and 5 t ha-1 respectively, (FAO, 2013).

1.2       Environmental Requirements

Tomato can be grown on a variety of soil types provided proper soil amendments and cultural practices suitable to the crop are undertaken (Naika et al., 2005). On clay soil, the addition and incorporation of rice hull at the rate of 10 t ha-1  will improve aeration and tilth of the soil. The ideal soil pH range for tomato is from 5.4 to 6.8 (Dagoon, 2001). Tomato is classified as a fruit vegetable which is grown in the cool and warm regions of the world. There is however varieties developed for warm regions only just as there are those that are developed for wet season and those developed for dry season. The climate of Nigeria especially the savanna agro-ecology offers the most suitable condition for the performance of heat tolerant tomato varieties particularly during the dry season which has relatively low temperature, relative humidity and pest and disease infestation.

Tomato is known to be a warm season crop. It can survive certain level of cold units but are intolerant of very low temperatures. The crop requires very stable temperature ranges with minimums and maximums not being too wide apart. The minimum temperature is around 10°C while maximum is 34°C. Optimum temperature for tomato ranges from 21- 240C. Temperature variation might result in reduced  yields or  poor fruit quality. At optimum temperatures, good quality seeds will take about seven days to emerge after germination. Temperature affects flowering and pollination, while hot and dry weather leads to drying of the flowers which stops pollination and reduce yield. If temperatures are  below  150C  or  above  290C,  pollen  release  is  restricted,  resulting  in  incomplete fertilization of ovules. This causes collapsed fruit walls and formation of deep indentation in the fruit, a phenomenon called catface (Peirce, 1987; Bok et al., 2006).

Relative humidity is a very important factor in terms of growth, incidence of disease and fruit quality in tomato production. Both high and low humidity have adverse effects on tomato production. However, the occurrence of long periods of high relative humidity is normally considered to be most serious.  According to Walker and Duncan (1956), high relative humidity can favour overall plant growth due to a reduction in plant water stress. Low relative humidity on the other hand is associated with reduced growth and yield as well as other problems such as fruit maladies (radial cracking of tomatoes). Relative humidity of  70  %  is  optimal  for  pollination,  fruit  set  and  development.  Very  high humidity keeps the pollen too damp and sticky (pollen dumping). This phenomenon reduces the chance of sufficient pollen transfer from anthers to stigma (Mariam, 2017).

Tomato is the second most consumed vegetable in the world after potato (Grandillo et al., 1999). Tomato is grown for home consumption in the backyard gardens of almost every homestead across sub-Saharan Africa. It is a cash crop for both small and medium-scale commercial farmers (Varela et al., 2003). Tomato is consumed in diverse ways. The fruits are eaten raw, as ingredient in many dishes, sauce, salads and drinks. While it is botanically a fruit, it is considered as a culinary.

According to United States Department of Agriculture (USDA, 2012), many tomato products are good sources of potassium and vitamins A, C and E. Tomato products contain similar amounts of potassium and folate compared with other popular vegetables, but tomato products are superior sources of vitamin C. In comparison with the other regularly consumed vegetables, only carrots are better dietary source of vitamin A than tomato-based foods.

The  fruit  of  tomato  is  rich  in  lycopene  which  may  have  beneficial  health  effect. According to Joseph and Yoav (2004), research has demonstrated that several health benefits are clearly associated with tomato products in the diet. The natural tomato oil increases the bio-availability of phytonutrients. For maximum benefit, dietary supplement customers who have opted for a nutritional approach should consider products containing a standardized tomato extract that supplies many of the active phytonutrients. The antioxidant effect of lycopene is potentially beneficial in disease prevention for both cardiovascular disease (CVD) and prostate cancer. Lycopene in tomato reduces the development of CVD by reducing inflammation, inhibiting cholesterol synthesis, and improving immune function (Petr and Erdman, 2005)

1.3       Statement of Research Problem

Commercial production of tomato relies mostly on exotic varieties and production is essentially restricted to the northern Guinea savanna and the Sudan savanna ecologies due to favourable climatic conditions, particularly high insulation and low relative humidity. However, because of its nutritive and commercial values, production of exotic tomato has also spread to the southern and derived Guinea savanna ecologies where hitherto, the traditional varieties are produced.  Consequently,  exotic tomato varieties have almost replaced the traditional varieties of southwest Nigeria. In the Sudan and northern Guinea savanna of Nigeria,  observation  has  shown  that  farmers‟ choice of varieties for increased yield of tomato depends more on such characteristics as size and firmness of fruit rather than exploring other important characteristics such as adaptation of the varieties to environmental conditions.

Inorganic fertilizer application is the fastest way of meeting the nitrogen need of crop plants like tomato. However, inorganic fertilizers are out of reach of small and medium scale farmers due to increasing cost. The problems associated with the use of inorganic fertilizers are environmental pollution and ecological imbalances they cause. Nitrogen, being the most important primary nutrient needed for the satisfactory growth and development of tomato in the savanna, is in limited quantity in the soil. The beneficial effects of inorganic fertilizers have been deemed short of immeasurable significance of the organic sources of nutrients. The shortage, high cost and negative residual effects of synthetic fertilizer have limited their use for vegetable production amongst smallholder farmers in Nigeria. Continuous use of inorganic fertilizers increases the acidity of the soil. This in turn limits the activities of beneficial microorganisms and percentage assimilability of available nutrients in the soil. This could in turn result in imbalance of nutrient content in the soil.

Most organic manure recommendations for tomato that are based on rates do not take into consideration the type and nitrogen content of the manure before making recommendation to farmers and this has led to variations in organic manure recommendation even within the same ecological zone.

Tomato production during the dry season takes the largest percentage of the total production  of  tomato  in  Nigeria.  Moisture  conservation  is  an  important  agronomic practice for increased production of tomato. Inorganic mulching materials such as black polythene has been recommended as the most effective way of conserving soil moisture but has some detrimental effects on soil condition such as poor circulation of air and negative impact of chemical on soil condition. Organic mulching materials such as rice straw with little or no detrimental effect on soil condition have been recommended for farmers in the Sudan savanna ecology due to its availability but its use as livestock feed has made it scarce. The availability of sugarcane peels constitute an agricultural waste, but also to the climatic variables when burnt, thereby leading to climate change could be used alternatively as an option to conserve moisture for the plants and maintain a safe environment for agricultural sustainability.

1.4       Justification of the Study

Tomato production is left in the hand of small and medium scale farmers. Studies in Nigeria have shown that there is high demand for fresh tomato. Scarcity during the hot dry season (March-June) has been attributed to under production. Farmers use minimum of the improved techniques, thus any practice to be recommended to increase yield and improve quality must be simple, affordable and applicable to small scale production.

To meet the increasing demand for tomato in Nigeria due to population increase, tomato varieties that are most adapted to climatic or environmental conditions need to be developed for optimum production.

To address the problem of deteriorating condition of the environment especially soil quality, a natural and safe but profitable method of enriching the quality of the soil that is less expensive such as the use of suitable organic material need to be adopted. Organic fertilizers such as poultry droppings and organic mulches such as sugar-cane peels mulch can be employed as an effective source of nitrogen, for water conservation. To develop the commonly grown varieties in the savanna where production is concentrated, there is need to standardize production technology, especially under local climatic and edaphic conditions, so that farmers of the area can get maximum benefit from tomato production with limited irrigation resources as well as to increase production and also maintain a safe environment under dry season condition.

Alternative nutrient sources that are environmentally friendly for improved yield and quality such as the use of organic manure which is capable of changing the structure of the soil over time and improve the water conservation of the soil which will ultimately enhance productivity can also be developed. Sustainability in agro-ecosystems involves environmentally friendly techniques based on biological and non-chemical methods (Bonato and Ridray, 2007).

Application of organic fertilizers has been a traditional practice of maintaining soil fertility.    Apart  from  the nutrients  they supply,  they can  improve soil  physical  and chemical properties.

1.5       Aim and Objectives of the Study

This research was conducted to investigate the responses of two tomato varieties as influenced by organic mulches and nitrogen sources.  The study was therefore designed to achieve the following objectives:

I.      To assess the effects of nitrogen sources and organic mulches on the growth, yield and nutritive fruit qualities of two tomato varieties.

II.      To determine if there is any significant interaction between varieties, nitrogen sources and organic mulching materials on the crop yield.

III.      To   study  correlation   and   path-coefficient   analysis   of   some   important characters of tomato varieties.

IV.      To determine the cost benefit return on investment in tomato production using the different factor treatments and their combination.

₦15,000.00 – DOWNLOAD FULL PROJECT DOWNLOAD FULL PROJECT Added to cart

---

---

---

---

Related Project Topics :