ABSTRACT
This study was carried out to evaluate some chemicals and nutrients available in the stems and branches of Jatropha curcas harvested in the University of Benin. The objectives of this study were to evaluate some available chemicals in the stems and branches of Jatropha curcas plant, assess some available nutritional constituents present and verify if differences exist in the data obtained for the available chemicals and nutrients among sources of data.
The Jatropha stem and branches for the study was harvested from the Jatropha farm at the Faculty of Agriculture, University of Benin, Benin City, Nigeria. 3 stems were randomly selected from the Jatropha farm and from each stem, 3 samples of 15cm were collected from the top (branches), middle and base of the stem. The determination of the proximate and mineral composition was carried out in the Central Laboratory of the Faculty of Agriculture, University of Benin, Benin City, Nigeria.
The data obtained from the experiment were subjected to inferential statistics using analysis of variance (ANOVA) at 5% level of significance. The mean values obtained for the proximate composition were: Moisture Content 4.9±0.9, Crude Protein 5.9±0.3, % Ash 7.8 ±0.8, % Fat 0.89±0.3, Crude Fibre 53.6±3.3, NFE 27.1±5.4. While the mean value obtained for the mineral composition were: Calcium (Ca) 59.2±4.0 Phosphorus (P) 41.6±3.1, Potassium (K) 6.8±1.5, Magnesium (Mg) 16.3±1.9, Sodium (Na) 21.6±2.6, Iron (Fe) 3.15±0.3, Copper (Cu) 9.61±1.3. In conclusion, the result indicated that the fresh plant has a high shelf life, is a low source of protein and has a high concentration of wood fibre which plays a role in the prevention of diseases and the production of pulp and paper. It also revealed that the stem is a good source of some important mineral elements as compared to the mineral composition of some commercial plants.
