ABSTRACT

Field experiment was conducted during the late season of September 2024 at the Teaching and Research Farm of the Faculty of Agriculture, University of Benin, Benin City (6⁰23’58⁰N, 5⁰37’46⁰E, 94.64m asl) in the rainforest zone of Nigeria to evaluate the impact of different sowing dates (7^th, 14^th, 21^st and 28^th) on cowpea yield and yield components . The experiment was laid out in a Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with three replications. Data were collected on number of pods per plant, number of seeds per pod, grain yield and fodder yield.

The results demonstrated significant effects of sowing date on cowpea performance, it showed that early sowing (7^th September) produced the highest number of pods per plant (2.2), seeds per pod (6.7), grain yield (16.9 g/plant), and fodder yield (20.8 g/plant). Yield components declined significantly (p<0.05) with delayed sowing, with the lowest values recorded on 28^th September. This study concludes that early sowing (first week of September) is optimal for maximizing cowpea yield in the Nigerian Rainforest Agro-ecology.