Abstract
A greenhouse study was carried out at Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria, Ibadan to evaluate the effect of NPK fertilizer formulations on the growth and dry matter yield of coffee seedlings. The treatments consisted of NUTRICO-1 (NPK-liquid fertilizer) applied at rate 5 and 10 ml/15L water) and NPK- solid fertilizer 15:15:15 applied at 1, 3 and 5g/coffee seedling and a control. Data on growth of coffee seedlings were taken for six months. All the fertilizers irrespective of rates and types of NPK formulations enhanced the growth parameters. The effect of NUTRICO1 was comparable to NPK on height and stem diameter of seedlings. NPK-solid fertilizer increased the height of coffee seedlings at 6 months after transplanting (MAT) by 19 % compared to NUTRICO-1. The effect of NUTRICO-1 was comparable to NPK-solid 15: 15: 15 on the growth of coffee seedlings. The positive influence of NPK fertilizer formulations on the growth of coffee seedlings particularly NUTRICO-1 is a pointer that there is need to explore alternative fertilizer formulations that will combine efficiency with cost effectiveness and ease of application in the production of coffee and other fruit trees.
Keywords:
npk fertilizer
coffee seedlings
dry matter
nutrient uptake
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