Effect of tillage, vine length and fertilizer application on the growth, yield and quality of sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas (L) Lam).

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SEPTEMBER, 2015
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Sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas L.) is becoming the most widely distributed root crops in most developing countries. However, production of the crop in Africa is faced with several constraints among which are tillage method used by farmers, the type of planting material farmers used and lack of knowledge on the appropriate rate of fertilizer the crop need. Two field experiments were carried out at the Plantation Section of the Department of Crop and Soil Sciences, KNUST, to evaluate the effect of tillage, vine length and fertilizer application on the growth, yield and quality of sweet potato. The first experiment was conducted during the major season of 2014 to evaluate the effect of tillage method and phosphorus fertilizer on sweet potato growth, yield and quality. Two tillage methods (ridge and mound) and five phosphorus fertilizer rates (0, 30, 60, 90 and 120 kg P2O5/ha) in the form of triple superphosphate (46 % P2O5) were applied in a factorial experiment with treatments arranged in a Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with three replications. A 30 kg N/ha in the form of urea (46 % N) was applied to all the treatments. Sweet potato variety Okumkom was used for the study. The results showed no significant tillage effect on growth, the ridge tillage produced the greatest sweet potato root yield. Phosphorus fertilizer at the rate of 60 kg P2O5/ha recorded the greatest growth and yield. Both tillage method and phosphorus fertilizer did not significantly influence sweet potato quality characters. The second experiment which evaluated the effect of vine length and potassium fertilizer on sweet potato growth and yield was carried out during the minor season in 2014 – 2015. Vine length (15, 22.5 and 30 cm) and four rates of potassium fertilizer (0, 60, 120 and 180 kg K2O/ha) in the form of muriate of potash (60% K2O) were used. The treatments were arranged in a Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with three replications. A 30 kg N/ha in the form of urea (46 % N) was equally applied to all the treatments and Okumkom variety was also used. Results showed that vine length of 30 cm had the greatest growth and sweet potato yield components. Application of potassium fertilizer at 60 kg K2O/ha showed the greatest response as indicated by the production of longer vine, greater number of leaves, branches, tuber roots and marketable root yield.
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A thesis submitted to the Department of Crop and Soil Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture, College of Agriculture and Natural Resource, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the award of Master of Philosophy Degree in Agronomy.
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