COMPARISON OF CONVENTIONAL AND BAG PLANTING ON TUBER YIELD AND SEED YAM TYPES ON SEEDLING EMERGENCE OF YAM (Dioscorea rotundata)

ABSTRACT

Yam cultivation, a staple in many regions, faces challenges from traditional methods. The Bag production method emerges as an innovative approach to address these challenges. The method is being developed to address the nationwide insecurity that prevents farmers from going to their farm lands, due to fear of kidnapping and death in some cases. A field experiment was carried out at Ogida, Benin City. The objective was to compare cut and uncut seed yams in terms of sprouting, growth and yield. The treatments studied were two ( cut and uncut seed yam ). The replication were 10 each with a total of 20 in the study. Data collected were analyzed with unequal variance t-test, which showed no significant differences in tuber weight and tuber girth between Conventional and Bag planting methods at 0.01 level of significance. Also, number of weeks to emergence and number of leaves were not significant at 0.05 level of probability. Conventional yam produced a higher yield compared to bag planting while uncut seed yam sprout faster than cut seed yam. In conclusion, bag method of growing Yam is feasible and comparative compared to conventional method. Bag method offers a conducive environment for yam growth and enhanced control over growing conditions, particularly in areas with limited land.