Effects of different organic manures and NPK fertilizer on soil properties

Abstract

A pot experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of different organic manures and NPK fertilizer on soil properties from Ibekwe Akpanya and  Ekim town both in Mkpat Enin Local Government Area. The manures were incorporated into the soils two weeks before soil sampling while NPK fertilizer  was applied at split doses before soil sampling. Some important parameters in the soil (before and after treatment) and manure (both organic and  inorganic) were selected and analyzed using standard methods. Nitrogen (3.38%), phosphorus (0.98%), potassium (3.10 ppm) and magnesium (2.81 ppm)  contents of the poultry manure were the highest when compared to other organic manures used for the experiment. NPK fertilizer had the highest  Nitrogen (4.78%) and phosphorus (1.03%) content among all used for the experiment. The properties of the soil showed that the organic carbon,  total nitrogen, phosphorus and calcium were of low nutrients. On application of the organic manures to both soils, there was an increase in the soil  nutrient. The soil in which poultry dung was applied had a higher organic carbon content of 4.60% in Ibekwe Akpanya and 6.69% in Ekim town when  compared to application of NPK fertilizer in Ibekwe Akpanya (3.45%) and Ekim town (5.66%). The applications of organic manures perform almost the  same or better than NPK fertilizer and poultry dung seemed to be the best among the organic manures applied. Large quantity of manure will be  required to improve poor soil properties, to achieve the best result.