Comparative study of different organic manures and NPK fertilizer for improvement of soil chemical properties and dry matter yield of maize in two different soils

Abstract

A pot experiment was conducted to compare different organic manures with NPK fertilizer for improvement of chemical properties of acid soil from farmer’s field in coastal area of Epe and nutrient depleted soil from research field of Institute of Agricultural Research and Training, Moor Plantation, Ibadan. Maize was planted for 12 weeks and dry matter yield was determined. Results showed that application of 5 ton/ha of each of the evaluated organic manures and 100 kg/ha NPK 15-15-15 fertilizer improved chemical properties of both acid and nutrient depleted soils compared with unfertilized soil. Application of different types of organic manures reduced the acidic levels of both the soils. Cow dung application resulted in the highest pH levels of 6.37 and 6.50 in acid soil and nutrient depleted soil respectively while NPK fertilizer gave lowest pH levels of 5.28 and 5.74 for both soils. Also, application of different types of organic manures enhanced soil organic C, total N, available P, exchangeable K and CEC better than NPK fertilizer in both soils. The study indicated that among the organic manures evaluated, cane rat droppings improved soil chemical properties best. Plant dry matter yield increased with application of NPK fertilizer compared with compost, poultry manure and cane rat droppings in both soils. In acid soil, application of NPK fertilizer gave the highest dry matter yield of 4.77 g/plant while in nutrient depleted soil; application of NPK fertilizer gave the highest dry matter yield of 5.58 g/plant.     Key words: Manure, fertilizer, dry matter, pH levels.