ABSTRACT
This experiment was carried out at the Screen house of the Department of Crop Science, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Benin, Benin City, Nigeria to evaluate the effect of potting mixtures, sowing depth and watering regime on dry matter production of soursop seedlings. This experiment involved three potting media, Top soil(TS) + poultry manure (PM) 1:1 (3kg +3kg), top soil (TS) + poultry Manure (PM) 1:2 (2kg +4kg), and top soil (TS) + poultry manure (PM) 2:1 (4kg + 2kg), three sowing depths (2, 4 and 6cm), and three watering regimes (one every day, once in three days and once in five days) laid out in a 3×3×3 factorial arrangements fitted into complete randomized design (CRD) and replicated three times. At 12 and 14 weeks after sowing (WAS), data were collected on root length, shoot dry weight, root dry weight, dry weight, root : shoot ratio and crop growth rate. Result showed that dry matter variables had significant (p<0.05) response to potting mixture, sowing depth and watering regime. The longest root (16.33cm) was produced from top soil + poultry manure 2:1 sowed with seed at 2cm depth and watered every day. The heaviest shoot dry weight (1.25g), root dry weight (0.36g) and dry weight (2.11g) were observed once in three days but with low root:shoot ratio. A potting mixture of top soil + poultry manure 1:1 cropped at 4cm sowing depth and watered once in 5 days produced the highest root:shoot ratio but low crop growth rate (0.01gm-2 ) and dry weight (0.30g) . The highest crop growth rate (0.10gm-2 day-1 ) was observed on top soil + poultry manure 2:1 cropped at 2cm depth, watered every day. The matter production of soursop seedlings, TS+PM 1:2 mixture resulted in the highest root length, shoot dry weight, root dry weight, and overall dry weight. It also indicated the highest crop growth rate. The result also showed that the different sowing depths and watering regimes, TS+PM 1:2 mixture consistently outperformed the other mixtures in terms of dry matter production. After cropping with soursop seedlings, this mixture maintained favorable soil properties, including pH, nutrient content, and soil texture. Based on the study's findings, it is recommended to use the TS+PM 1:2 mixture for soursop seedling cultivation, as it consistently demonstrated the highest dry matter production and improved soil properties.
