Soil chemical properties and growth response of Moringa oleifera to different sources and rates of organic and NPK fertilizers

Purpose The need for increasing production of Moringaoleifera in Nigeria can be achieved through adequate fertilization.This study investigated the effects of sources andrates of NPK (15:15:15) and compost on soil properties andproductivity of Moringa at National Horticultural ResearchInstitute, Ibadan, Nigeria.Methods NPK was applied at 30, 60, and 90 kg N/ ha, cowdung (CD), poultry manure (PM) and organomineral (OM)were applied at 10, 20 and 30 tons/ha. The experimentaldesign was a randomized complete block design with threereplicates. Organic fertilizers were incorporated into thesoil 2 weeks before sowing; NPK was split applied at 2 and5 weeks after sowing. Seeds were sown at 75 cm 9 75 cmspacing. Data were taken on plant height (cm), stem girth(cm), number of leaves, leaf biomass, stems weight andpost-planting soil properties.Results Growth values for NPK and compost treatmentswere higher than the control. PM applied at 30 tons ha-1resulted in highest growth values: plant height (65.91 cm),stem girth (1.51 cm) and number of leaves (14.20). PMapplied at 30 tons ha-1 gave higher stem weight(2249.9 g) and leaf biomass (3610.5 g). Post-planting soilanalysis indicated that nitrogen, phosphorus, calcium,sodium, manganese, iron and zinc contents were higher inplots with organic and inorganic fertilizers except forpotassium and magnesium.Conclusion PM proved more superior to CD manure andothers because it produced better growth attributes such asshoot height, stem girth and number of leaves and leafbiomass than its counterparts produced.