INFLUENCE OF MANURE TYPES AND NPK 15:15:15 ON SOIL LOSS DURING HARVESTING TURMERIC (CURCUMA LONGA L.)
Abstract
Soil loss due to crop harvesting is an acknowledged erosion process that has contributed
to soil degradation around the world. Turmeric (Curcuma longa L.) is a valuable spice crop that
is widely cultivated in many parts of the world. Aminal manures as an alternative to inorganic
fertilizer offer considerable potential as a source of nutrients and organic matter. Hence, the field
experiment was carried out at Ladoke Akintola University of Technology from June to
November 2024 to compare the influence of manure types and NPK 15:15:15 on soil loss during
harvesting of tumeric.
The five treatments were arranged in a randomized complete block design with 3
replications. The treatment applied were: T0-Control, T1-NPK 15:15:15, T2-Poultry manure, T3-
Pig manure, T4-Rabbit manure. Soil samples were collected with the aid of cylindrical core after
which they were made to pass through laboratory procedure in order to determine some selected
soil physical properties: bulk density, total porosity and soil particle size analysis. Plant data
were collected on tumeric growth: plant height, number of leaves, stem diameter, leaf area, yield
of tumeric and soil loss. All data on soil and plant were subjected to analysis of variance
(ANOVA) using Genstat 8th edition, and means were compared using Duncan's Multiple Range
Test at 5% probability level.
The manure types applied had no significant effect on bulk density, moisture content and
total porosity of the soil. The highest soil loss was observed and measured in NPK 15:15:15
having the highest value (104.4 g), while the lowest was piggery manure (56.2 g). The manures
had a significant effect on tumeric growth parameters compared to the NPK 15:15:15 fertilizer
but not different from control. Throughout the experiment, NPK 15:15:15 had no significant on
plant height and stem diameter of tumeric but significantly increased the leaf area, NPK 15:15:15
was added five weeks after planting which helped to increase the leaf area compared to control.
In conclusion, the use of NPK 15:15:15 which is inorganic fertilizer improved the
selected soil physical properties (moisture content and bulk density),growth
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