Effects of Inorganic Fertilisers and Sunnhemp (<i>Crotalaria juncea</i> [L.]) as a Green Manure Crop on Maize (<i>Zea mays</i> [l.]) Growth, Seed Yield and Labour Cost

Mzwandile P. Mabuza; Oghenetsavbuko T. Edje; Gideon N. Shongwe

doi:doi:10.11648/j.ajaf.20160403.11

| Peer-Reviewed

Effects of Inorganic Fertilisers and Sunnhemp (Crotalaria juncea [L.]) as a Green Manure Crop on Maize (Zea mays [l.]) Growth, Seed Yield and Labour Cost

Mzwandile P. Mabuza, Oghenetsavbuko T. Edje, Gideon N. Shongwe

Published in American Journal of Agriculture and Forestry (Volume 4, Issue 3)

Received: 30 May 2016 Accepted: 13 June 2016 Published: 23 June 2016

Views: Downloads:

Download PDF

Share This Article

Twitter
Linked In
Facebook

Abstract

Maize is the staple food in Swaziland but there have been shortfalls in production mainly due to the high cost of commercial fertilisers. One possible means of addressing the problem is the use of sunnhemp (Crotalaria juncea L.), a green manuring legume, which is cheap and easy to produce. A field experiment was conducted at the Malkerns Research Station during the 2014/2015 cropping season. The main objective of the study was to evaluate whether sunnhemp can be used as a substitute for inorganic fertilisers. The treatments were (1) maize with 40 kg/ha sunnhemp used as mulch, (2) maize with 80 kg/ha sunnhemp used as mulch, (3) maize with 120 kg/ha sunnhemp used as mulch, (4) maize with 40 kg/ha sunnhemp soil incorporated, (5) maize with 80 kg/ha sunnhemp soil incorporated, (6) maize with 120 kg/ha sunnhemp soil incorporated (7) maize with no fertilisers (8) maize with half rates of inorganic fertilisers and (9) Maize with recommended rates of inorganic fertilisers. The design of the experiment was a randomized complete block design and each treatment was replicated four times. Maize variety SC 403 was used. Data were collected on sunnhemp biomass, cost of placement and rate of mineralisation. Maize data were on growth, yield and yield components. The results on labour cost of placement show that soil incorporation was significantly (P < 0.01) higher than mulching with sunnhemp being 29.8 man-days/ha while it was 18.6 man-days/ha for mulching. The amount of mineralised sunnhemp was significantly (P < 0.05) higher in incorporated sunnhemp than from sunnhemp used as mulch. Maize grown with 120 kg/ha of sunnhemp yielded 7662.7 kg/ha while maize with 40 kg/ha of sunnhemp was lowest with 7251.1 kg/ha, a yield difference of 5.4%. Maize from soil incorporated sunnhemp yielded 7519.3 kg/ha while maize grown with sunnhemp used as mulch was lower with 7325.0 kg/ha, a yield difference of 2.6%. Maize grown with the recommended rates of fertilisers yielded higher than the rest of the treatments, it yielded 8405.7 kg/ha while maize grown with 80 kg/ha of sunnhemp later used as mulch was lowest with 6945.7 kg/ha. It is concluded that labour cost of sunnhemp placement was significantly (P < 0.01) higher for soil incorporation than mulching. Nitrogen mineralisation was significantly (P < 0.05) higher when sunnhemp was incorporated than when used as mulch. It is recommended that farmers grow their maize with 80 kg/ha of sunnhemp and use it as mulch seven weeks after planting.

Published in	American Journal of Agriculture and Forestry (Volume 4, Issue 3)
DOI	10.11648/j.ajaf.20160403.11
Page(s)	56-63
Creative Commons	This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright	Copyright © The Author(s), 2016. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Sunnhemp, Green Manures, Soil Incorporation, Mulching, Mineralisation

References

[1]	Ambrosano, E. J., Trivelin, P. C., Cantarella, H., Ambrosano, G. M. and Muraoka, T. (2003). Nitrogen mineralization in soils amended with sunnhemp, velvet bean and common bean residues. Scientia Agricola. 60.1.133-137.
[2]	Amin, M. E. (2011). Effect of different nitrogen sources on growth, yield and quality of fodder maize (Zea mays L.). Journal of the Saudi Society of Agricultural Sciences. 10. 17-23.
[3]	Anonymous, (2006). Soil fertility management for the maize cropping systems of small holders in Southern Africa. http://www.suelo.br/pdf/sa/v63n5/31405 pdf. 05-04-2008.
[4]	Casey, A., Wynia, R. and Row, J. (2011). Evaluation and Use of Sunn Hemp (Crotalaria juncea L.) at the Manhattan Plant Materials Center, Manhattan, Kansas. Plant Materials Center. Manhattan. Kansas. USA.
[5]	Daughtry, C. S., Walthall, C. L., Kim, M. S., Brown de Coulstoun, E. and McMurtrey, J. E. (2000). Estimating Corn Leaf Chlorophyll Concentration from Leaf and Canopy Reflectance. Remote Sensing Environment. 74: 229–239.
[6]	Dlamini, M. (2007). Evaluation of soil and water conservation techniques on performance of maize at Luyengo. Unpublished B. Sc. Final year research report. University of Swaziland, Luyengo Campus, Luyengo, Swaziland.
[7]	Food and Agricultural Organisation (2001). Soil fertility Management in support of food security in Sub-Saharan Africa. Publishing and Multimedia Service, Information Division, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Rome. Italy.
[8]	Mabuza, M. (2009). Evaluation of sunnhemp (Crotalaria juncea L.) alone or in association with maize (Zea may L.). Unpublished B. Sc. Final year research report. University of Swaziland, Luyengo Campus, Luyengo, Swaziland.
[9]	Miracle, M. P. (2006). Maize in Tropical Africa. The University of Wisconsin Press, Madison, U.S.A.
[10]	Mthethwa, C. M. (2009). Residual effect of sunnhemp (Crotalaria juncea) as a green manure crop on a succeeding maize (Zea mays) crop. Unpublished M. Sc. Final year research report. The University of Swaziland, Luyengo campus, Luyengo, Swaziland.
[11]	Nxumalo, G., Ossom, E., Rhykerd, R. and Rhykerd, C. (2010). Alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) Green Manuring and Ecological Properties under corn (Zea mays L.) culture in Swaziland Alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) Green Manuring and Ecological Properties under corn (Zea mays L.) culture in Swaziland. Advances in Environmental Biology. 4 (3): 477-484.
[12]	Palm, C. A. and Sanchez, P. A. (1999). Nitrogen release levels from the leaves of some tropical legumes as affected by their lignin and polyphenolic contents. Soil Biology and Biochemistry. 22: 31-36.
[13]	Samples, D. and McCutcheon, J. (2003). Grazing Corn Residue. http://ohioline.osu.edu/anr-fact/0010.html. 29/03/2015.
[14]	Vakeesan, A., Nishanthan, T. and Mikunthan, G. (2008). Green manures: Nature’s gift to improve soil fertility. http://www.agriculturesnetwork.org/magazines/india/2-living-soils/green- manures-natures-gift-to-improve-soil/at_download/article_pdf. 25/03/2015.
[15]	Van den Berg, A. K. and Perkings, T. D. (2004). Evaluation of a portable chlorophyll meter to estimate chlorophyll and nitrogen contents in sugar maple (Acer saccharum Marsh.) leaves. Forest Ecology and Management. 200: 113–117.
[16]	Wang, K. H., McSorley, R. (2008). Management of Nematodes and Soil Fertility with Sunnhemp Cover Crop. http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/NGO43. 12/04/2009.
[17]	Warren, J., Wilson, T. and Edwards, J, (2012). Using sunnhemp as a cover crop in Oklahoma. http://osufacts.okstate.edu. 03/03/2015.
[18]	United Nations. (2012). Swaziland Food Insecurity Intensified by Financial Crisis. http://www.futuredirections.org.au/publications/food-and-water-crises/28- global-food- and-water-crises-swa/450-swaziland-food-insecurity-intensified-by-financial-crisis.html. 02/06/2014.

Cite This Article

Plain Text BibTeX RIS

APA Style

Mzwandile P. Mabuza, Oghenetsavbuko T. Edje, Gideon N. Shongwe. (2016). Effects of Inorganic Fertilisers and Sunnhemp (Crotalaria juncea [L.]) as a Green Manure Crop on Maize (Zea mays [l.]) Growth, Seed Yield and Labour Cost. American Journal of Agriculture and Forestry, 4(3), 56-63. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajaf.20160403.11

Copy | Download

ACS Style

Mzwandile P. Mabuza; Oghenetsavbuko T. Edje; Gideon N. Shongwe. Effects of Inorganic Fertilisers and Sunnhemp (Crotalaria juncea [L.]) as a Green Manure Crop on Maize (Zea mays [l.]) Growth, Seed Yield and Labour Cost. Am. J. Agric. For. 2016, 4(3), 56-63. doi: 10.11648/j.ajaf.20160403.11

Copy | Download

AMA Style

Mzwandile P. Mabuza, Oghenetsavbuko T. Edje, Gideon N. Shongwe. Effects of Inorganic Fertilisers and Sunnhemp (Crotalaria juncea [L.]) as a Green Manure Crop on Maize (Zea mays [l.]) Growth, Seed Yield and Labour Cost. Am J Agric For. 2016;4(3):56-63. doi: 10.11648/j.ajaf.20160403.11

Copy | Download

@article{10.11648/j.ajaf.20160403.11,
  author = {Mzwandile P. Mabuza and Oghenetsavbuko T. Edje and Gideon N. Shongwe},
  title = {Effects of Inorganic Fertilisers and Sunnhemp (Crotalaria juncea [L.]) as a Green Manure Crop on Maize (Zea mays [l.]) Growth, Seed Yield and Labour Cost},
  journal = {American Journal of Agriculture and Forestry},
  volume = {4},
  number = {3},
  pages = {56-63},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ajaf.20160403.11},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajaf.20160403.11},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ajaf.20160403.11},
  abstract = {Maize is the staple food in Swaziland but there have been shortfalls in production mainly due to the high cost of commercial fertilisers. One possible means of addressing the problem is the use of sunnhemp (Crotalaria juncea L.), a green manuring legume, which is cheap and easy to produce. A field experiment was conducted at the Malkerns Research Station during the 2014/2015 cropping season. The main objective of the study was to evaluate whether sunnhemp can be used as a substitute for inorganic fertilisers. The treatments were (1) maize with 40 kg/ha sunnhemp used as mulch, (2) maize with 80 kg/ha sunnhemp used as mulch, (3) maize with 120 kg/ha sunnhemp used as mulch, (4) maize with 40 kg/ha sunnhemp soil incorporated, (5) maize with 80 kg/ha sunnhemp soil incorporated, (6) maize with 120 kg/ha sunnhemp soil incorporated (7) maize with no fertilisers (8) maize with half rates of inorganic fertilisers and (9) Maize with recommended rates of inorganic fertilisers. The design of the experiment was a randomized complete block design and each treatment was replicated four times. Maize variety SC 403 was used. Data were collected on sunnhemp biomass, cost of placement and rate of mineralisation. Maize data were on growth, yield and yield components. The results on labour cost of placement show that soil incorporation was significantly (P < 0.01) higher than mulching with sunnhemp being 29.8 man-days/ha while it was 18.6 man-days/ha for mulching. The amount of mineralised sunnhemp was significantly (P < 0.05) higher in incorporated sunnhemp than from sunnhemp used as mulch. Maize grown with 120 kg/ha of sunnhemp yielded 7662.7 kg/ha while maize with 40 kg/ha of sunnhemp was lowest with 7251.1 kg/ha, a yield difference of 5.4%. Maize from soil incorporated sunnhemp yielded 7519.3 kg/ha while maize grown with sunnhemp used as mulch was lower with 7325.0 kg/ha, a yield difference of 2.6%. Maize grown with the recommended rates of fertilisers yielded higher than the rest of the treatments, it yielded 8405.7 kg/ha while maize grown with 80 kg/ha of sunnhemp later used as mulch was lowest with 6945.7 kg/ha. It is concluded that labour cost of sunnhemp placement was significantly (P < 0.01) higher for soil incorporation than mulching. Nitrogen mineralisation was significantly (P < 0.05) higher when sunnhemp was incorporated than when used as mulch. It is recommended that farmers grow their maize with 80 kg/ha of sunnhemp and use it as mulch seven weeks after planting.},
 year = {2016}
}

Copy | Download

TY - JOUR
T1 - Effects of Inorganic Fertilisers and Sunnhemp (Crotalaria juncea [L.]) as a Green Manure Crop on Maize (Zea mays [l.]) Growth, Seed Yield and Labour Cost
AU - Mzwandile P. Mabuza
AU - Oghenetsavbuko T. Edje
AU - Gideon N. Shongwe
Y1 - 2016/06/23
PY - 2016
N1 - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajaf.20160403.11
DO - 10.11648/j.ajaf.20160403.11
T2 - American Journal of Agriculture and Forestry
JF - American Journal of Agriculture and Forestry
JO - American Journal of Agriculture and Forestry
SP - 56
EP - 63
PB - Science Publishing Group
SN - 2330-8591
UR - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajaf.20160403.11
AB - Maize is the staple food in Swaziland but there have been shortfalls in production mainly due to the high cost of commercial fertilisers. One possible means of addressing the problem is the use of sunnhemp (Crotalaria juncea L.), a green manuring legume, which is cheap and easy to produce. A field experiment was conducted at the Malkerns Research Station during the 2014/2015 cropping season. The main objective of the study was to evaluate whether sunnhemp can be used as a substitute for inorganic fertilisers. The treatments were (1) maize with 40 kg/ha sunnhemp used as mulch, (2) maize with 80 kg/ha sunnhemp used as mulch, (3) maize with 120 kg/ha sunnhemp used as mulch, (4) maize with 40 kg/ha sunnhemp soil incorporated, (5) maize with 80 kg/ha sunnhemp soil incorporated, (6) maize with 120 kg/ha sunnhemp soil incorporated (7) maize with no fertilisers (8) maize with half rates of inorganic fertilisers and (9) Maize with recommended rates of inorganic fertilisers. The design of the experiment was a randomized complete block design and each treatment was replicated four times. Maize variety SC 403 was used. Data were collected on sunnhemp biomass, cost of placement and rate of mineralisation. Maize data were on growth, yield and yield components. The results on labour cost of placement show that soil incorporation was significantly (P < 0.01) higher than mulching with sunnhemp being 29.8 man-days/ha while it was 18.6 man-days/ha for mulching. The amount of mineralised sunnhemp was significantly (P < 0.05) higher in incorporated sunnhemp than from sunnhemp used as mulch. Maize grown with 120 kg/ha of sunnhemp yielded 7662.7 kg/ha while maize with 40 kg/ha of sunnhemp was lowest with 7251.1 kg/ha, a yield difference of 5.4%. Maize from soil incorporated sunnhemp yielded 7519.3 kg/ha while maize grown with sunnhemp used as mulch was lower with 7325.0 kg/ha, a yield difference of 2.6%. Maize grown with the recommended rates of fertilisers yielded higher than the rest of the treatments, it yielded 8405.7 kg/ha while maize grown with 80 kg/ha of sunnhemp later used as mulch was lowest with 6945.7 kg/ha. It is concluded that labour cost of sunnhemp placement was significantly (P < 0.01) higher for soil incorporation than mulching. Nitrogen mineralisation was significantly (P < 0.05) higher when sunnhemp was incorporated than when used as mulch. It is recommended that farmers grow their maize with 80 kg/ha of sunnhemp and use it as mulch seven weeks after planting.
VL - 4
IS - 3
ER -

Copy | Download

Author Information

Mzwandile P. Mabuza

Crop Production Department, University of Swaziland, Luyengo, Swaziland
Oghenetsavbuko T. Edje

Crop Production Department, University of Swaziland, Luyengo, Swaziland
Gideon N. Shongwe

Crop Production Department, University of Swaziland, Luyengo, Swaziland

Download PDF

Sections

Plain Text BibTeX RIS

APA Style

Mzwandile P. Mabuza, Oghenetsavbuko T. Edje, Gideon N. Shongwe. (2016). Effects of Inorganic Fertilisers and Sunnhemp (Crotalaria juncea [L.]) as a Green Manure Crop on Maize (Zea mays [l.]) Growth, Seed Yield and Labour Cost. American Journal of Agriculture and Forestry, 4(3), 56-63. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajaf.20160403.11

Copy | Download

ACS Style

Mzwandile P. Mabuza; Oghenetsavbuko T. Edje; Gideon N. Shongwe. Effects of Inorganic Fertilisers and Sunnhemp (Crotalaria juncea [L.]) as a Green Manure Crop on Maize (Zea mays [l.]) Growth, Seed Yield and Labour Cost. Am. J. Agric. For. 2016, 4(3), 56-63. doi: 10.11648/j.ajaf.20160403.11

Copy | Download

AMA Style

Mzwandile P. Mabuza, Oghenetsavbuko T. Edje, Gideon N. Shongwe. Effects of Inorganic Fertilisers and Sunnhemp (Crotalaria juncea [L.]) as a Green Manure Crop on Maize (Zea mays [l.]) Growth, Seed Yield and Labour Cost. Am J Agric For. 2016;4(3):56-63. doi: 10.11648/j.ajaf.20160403.11

Copy | Download

@article{10.11648/j.ajaf.20160403.11,
  author = {Mzwandile P. Mabuza and Oghenetsavbuko T. Edje and Gideon N. Shongwe},
  title = {Effects of Inorganic Fertilisers and Sunnhemp (Crotalaria juncea [L.]) as a Green Manure Crop on Maize (Zea mays [l.]) Growth, Seed Yield and Labour Cost},
  journal = {American Journal of Agriculture and Forestry},
  volume = {4},
  number = {3},
  pages = {56-63},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ajaf.20160403.11},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajaf.20160403.11},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ajaf.20160403.11},
  abstract = {Maize is the staple food in Swaziland but there have been shortfalls in production mainly due to the high cost of commercial fertilisers. One possible means of addressing the problem is the use of sunnhemp (Crotalaria juncea L.), a green manuring legume, which is cheap and easy to produce. A field experiment was conducted at the Malkerns Research Station during the 2014/2015 cropping season. The main objective of the study was to evaluate whether sunnhemp can be used as a substitute for inorganic fertilisers. The treatments were (1) maize with 40 kg/ha sunnhemp used as mulch, (2) maize with 80 kg/ha sunnhemp used as mulch, (3) maize with 120 kg/ha sunnhemp used as mulch, (4) maize with 40 kg/ha sunnhemp soil incorporated, (5) maize with 80 kg/ha sunnhemp soil incorporated, (6) maize with 120 kg/ha sunnhemp soil incorporated (7) maize with no fertilisers (8) maize with half rates of inorganic fertilisers and (9) Maize with recommended rates of inorganic fertilisers. The design of the experiment was a randomized complete block design and each treatment was replicated four times. Maize variety SC 403 was used. Data were collected on sunnhemp biomass, cost of placement and rate of mineralisation. Maize data were on growth, yield and yield components. The results on labour cost of placement show that soil incorporation was significantly (P < 0.01) higher than mulching with sunnhemp being 29.8 man-days/ha while it was 18.6 man-days/ha for mulching. The amount of mineralised sunnhemp was significantly (P < 0.05) higher in incorporated sunnhemp than from sunnhemp used as mulch. Maize grown with 120 kg/ha of sunnhemp yielded 7662.7 kg/ha while maize with 40 kg/ha of sunnhemp was lowest with 7251.1 kg/ha, a yield difference of 5.4%. Maize from soil incorporated sunnhemp yielded 7519.3 kg/ha while maize grown with sunnhemp used as mulch was lower with 7325.0 kg/ha, a yield difference of 2.6%. Maize grown with the recommended rates of fertilisers yielded higher than the rest of the treatments, it yielded 8405.7 kg/ha while maize grown with 80 kg/ha of sunnhemp later used as mulch was lowest with 6945.7 kg/ha. It is concluded that labour cost of sunnhemp placement was significantly (P < 0.01) higher for soil incorporation than mulching. Nitrogen mineralisation was significantly (P < 0.05) higher when sunnhemp was incorporated than when used as mulch. It is recommended that farmers grow their maize with 80 kg/ha of sunnhemp and use it as mulch seven weeks after planting.},
 year = {2016}
}

Copy | Download