Interaction effects of nitrogen and 2,4-epibrassinolide on physicochemical properties of acid sands under fluted pumpkin (telfairia occidentalis (f.) Hook) production in calabar metropolis, nigeria

Abstract

Soil acidity is among the critical challenges militating against food production in Calabar metropolis due to the inherent acidic nature of the soil. To overcome this challenge, this study evaluated the effects of combined application of nitrogen (N) and 2,4-epibrassinolide (BR) on the physicochemical properties of Ultisols for fluted pumpkin production. The N rates of 0, 25, 50 and100 kg/ha in a factorial combination with two levels of BR (without, BR₀ = 0 mL and with, BR₁ = 150 mL) arranged in a completely randomized design was used. The results showed that treatment application had no significant (p > 0.05) influence on the soil physical properties but had a considerable (p≤0.05) influence on the chemical properties of the soil. The organic matter, total N, available P, exchangeable Ca, Mg, K, Na had higher values (p≤0.05) across the N rates than in the control plots and were peaked at the 100 kg/ha N plots. The soil nutrients were similarly influenced (p≤0.05) by BR application. The plots treated with BR had the highest soil nutrients relative to those without BR application. The acidity levels were significantly reduced in plots with higher N rates and BR applications. This investigation demonstrates that using the right rate of N and BR can increase pumpkin production in an acid soil. The combined use of N at 100 kg/ha and 150 mL BR boosted the soil nutrients and reduced soil acidity. However, further investigation is needed to evaluate the effects of 2,4-epibrassinolide application on the quality of fluted pumpkin.