ABSTRACT
A field experiment was conducted at the crop pavilion, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Ilorin, Ilorin in the southern Guinea savannah ecology to determine the effect of NPK fertilizer application on the growth and yield of three cucumber varieties. The experiment was designed as a 3x5 factorial in RCBD, arranged in split-plots and replicated three times. The main plots consisted of three cucumber varieties (Marketer, Marketmore and Poinsett), while the sub-plots were made up of five levels (0, 25, 50, 75 and 100kgNha-1) of NPK fertilizer.Plant growth parameters (plant height, number of leaves/plant, number of branches per plant, leaf area per plant, number of male, female and total number of flowers) as well as yield characteristics (dry matter, fruit length, fruit circumference, number of fruits per plant and fruit fresh weight) were measured. Data were analyzed by the Analysis of Variance, using the split-plots model and significant means were separated by the Least Significant Difference at 5 percent probability level (LSD0.05). The results showed that the application of the NPK fertilizer appreciably improved the growth performances of cucumber, with 100kgNha-1 being the most outstanding rate while the yield characteristics were not improved with the application of NPK fertilizer. However, significant variety x fertilizer effects revealed that the application of 100kgNha-1 were best for the three varieties, suggesting indifferential nutrient requirements of cucumber varieties. Conclusively, the application of NPK fertilizer is beneficial for cucumber production and increasing the rate of application up to the highest level of 100 kg/ha gave the best results vegetatively.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
TITLE PAGE i
CERTIFICATION ii
DEDICATION iii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS iv
ABSTRACT vi
TABLE OF CONTENTS viii
LIST OF TABLES xi
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
1.1 Introduction 1
1.1.1 Health benefits of cucumber 2
1.1.2 Skin benefits of cucumber 3
1.1.3 Cucumber benefits for hair 4
1.2 Statement of experimental problems 5
1.3 Justification for the study 5
1.4 Objective of the study 6
CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1 Background information 7
2.2 Botanical taxonomy 9
2.3 Nutritional health values 9
2.4 Plant description 10
2.4.1 Rooting system 10
2.4.2 The shoot 10
2.4.3 Flower types 11
2.4.4 The fruit 11
2.5 Growth stages 12
2.6 Climatic requirements 12
2.7 Soil requirement 14
2.8 Effect of NPK fertilizer on cucumber growth and yield 14
CHAPTER THREE: MATERIALS AND METHODS
3.1 Description of experimental site 19
3.2 Description of the experimental design 19
3.3 Field preparation and experimental layout 19
3.4 Soil sampling and analysis 20
3.5 Planting of seeds 20
3.6 Agronomic management practices 20
3.7 Data collection 21
3.8 Data analyses 22
CHAPTER FOUR: RESULTS
4.1 Results of soil analysis 23
4.2 Effects of variety and fertilizer application on growth parameters of
cucumber plant 24
4.2.1 Effects on vine length 24
4.2.2 Effects on number of leaves per plant 27
4.2.3 Effects on leaf area per plant 29
4.2.4 Effects on the number of branches per plant 31
4.2.5 Effects on flowering traits of cucumber 33
4.3 Effects of variety and fertilizer application on yield and yield components
of cucumber 35
4.3.1 Effects on dry matter 35
4.3.2 Effects on Yield components and fruit yield 38
CHAPTER FIVE: DISCUSSION
5.1 Preamble 40
5.2 Effects of NPK fertilizer on growth parameters 41
5.3 Effects of NPK fertilizer on yield components and fruit yield 42
5.4 Varietal responses 42
SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION 43
REFERENCES 45
LIST OF TABLES
Table 4.1: Physical and chemical properties of the soil on experimental site 23
Table 4.2: Mean squares from the analysis of variance for vine length of cucumber 25
Table 4.3: Main effects of variety and fertilizer application on the vine length of
cucumber. 26
Table 4.4: Mean squares from the analysis of variance for number of leaves of cucumber 27
Table 4.5: Main effects of variety and fertilizer application on the number of leaves of
cucumber. 28
Table 4.6: Mean squares from the analysis of variance for leaf area of cucumber 29
Table 4.7: Main effects of variety and fertilizer application on the leaf area of cucumber 30
Table 4.8: Mean squares from the analysis of variance for number of branches of
cucumber. 31
Table 4.9: Main effects of variety and fertilizer application on the number of branches of
cucumber. 32
Table 4.10: Mean squares from the analysis of variance for the flowering traits of
cucumber. 33
Table 4.11: Main effects of variety and fertilizer application on the flowering traits of
cucumber. 34
Table 4.12: Mean squares from the analysis of variance for dry matter of cucumber 36
Table 4.13: Main effects of variety and fertilizer application on the dry matter of
cucumber. 37
Table 4.14: Mean squares from the analysis of variance for the yield components and
fruit yield of cucumber. 38
Table 4.15: Main effects of variety and fertilizer application on the yield components and
fruit yield of cucumber. 39
