Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-xbtfd Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-19T04:35:32.917Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Characterization of Legume Cover Crops for Weed Suppression in the Moist Savanna of Nigeria

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

Friday Ekeleme ,
I. Okezie Akobundu ,
R. Omosuyi Fadayomi ,
David Chikoye  and
Yekeen A. Abayomi
Friday Ekeleme
Affiliation:
Michael Okpara University, PMB 7267, Umudike, Abia State, Nigeria
I. Okezie Akobundu
Affiliation:
5310 Lantern Court, Baltimore, MD 21229-3163
R. Omosuyi Fadayomi
Affiliation:
University of Ilorin, Ilorin, Nigeria
David Chikoye*
Affiliation:
International Institute of Tropical Agriculture, Ibadan, Nigeria
Yekeen A. Abayomi
Affiliation:
University of Ilorin, Ilorin, Nigeria
*
Corresponding author's E-mail: [email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Multilocational characterization of selected herbaceous and shrub legumes was carried out over a 3-yr period at lowland and midlatitude sites in the moist savanna agroecological zone in Nigeria where a south–north gradient exists for rainfall, length of growing season, and insolation. One study site each was located in coastal–derived savanna (DS), southern Guinea savanna (SGS), and northern Guinea savanna (NGS). A fourth site was located in the plateau of the NGS. Only one legume cover crop, lablab, produced adequate ground cover and good weed suppression in three locations irrespective of rainfall amount, duration, and distribution. Velvetbean was superior to other legume cover crops in the lowland savanna locations where rainfall exceeded 1,100 mm/yr but not in the plateau of the NGS where rainfall was less than 1,000 mm. Pigeonpea grew luxuriantly and produced canopy cover that effectively suppressed weeds in the DS where rainfall was high. Centurion grew well and suppressed weeds effectively only in the SGS site where rainfall of 1,120 mm was well distributed over a 5-mo period. Sunnhemp grew well and suppressed weeds only in the NGS study sites where rainfall duration was 4 mo and the length of the growing period was short. Weed density was negatively correlated (P < 0.05) with percentage ground cover of those legume cover crops that were effective in weed suppression in all locations. Redundancy analysis revealed significant associations between weed species and cover crops at each of the locations.

Keywords

Centurion, Centrosema pascuorum Mart. Ex Benth. #3 CENPAlablab, Lablab purpureus (L.) Sweet # LABPUpigeonpea, Cajanus cajan (L.) Millsp. # CAJCAsunnhemp, Crotalaria ochroleuca G. Don # CROOCvelvetbean, Mucuna pruriens (L.) DC. var. utilis (Wright) Burck # MUCPRLegume ground coverweed densityweed species compositionWAP, weeks after plantingDS, coastal–derived savannaSGS, southern Guinea savannaNGS, northern Guinea savannaRDA, redundancy analysis
Type
Research
Information
Weed Technology , Volume 17 , Issue 1 , March 2003 , pp. 1 - 13
Copyright
Copyright © Weed Science Society of America 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Literature Cited

Akobundu, I. O. 1980. Live mulch: a new approach to weed control and crop production in the tropics. Proceedings of the British Crop Protection Conference—Weeds. Brighton, UK: British Crop Protection Council. pp. 377–382.Google Scholar
Akobundu, I. O. 1982. Live mulch crop production in the tropics. World Crops 34: 125–126.Google Scholar
Akobundu, I. O. 1984. Advances in live mulch crop production in the tropics. Proc. West. Soc. Weed Sci. 37: 51–57.Google Scholar
Akobundu, I. O. and Okigbo, B. N. 1984. Preliminary evaluation of ground covers for use as live mulch in corn production. Field Crops Res. 8: 177–186.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Akobundu, I. O. and Agyakwa, C. W. 1998. A Handbook of West African Weeds. Ibadan, Nigeria: International Institute of Tropical Agriculture. 170 p.Google Scholar
Akobundu, I. O., Ekeleme, F., and Chikoye, D. 1999. The influence of fallow management system and frequency of cropping on weed growth and crop yield. Weed Res. 39: 241–256.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Akobundu, I. O., Udensi, U. E., and Chikoye, D. 2000. Velvetbean (Mucuna spp.) suppresses speargrass (Imperata cylindrica (L.) Raeuschel) and increases maize yield. Int. J. Pest Manag. 46: 103–108.Google Scholar
Balasubramanian, V. and Blaise, N. K. A. 1993. Short season fallow management for sustainable crop production in Africa. In Ragland, J. and Lal, R., eds. Technologies for Sustainable Agriculture in the Tropics. ASA Special Publication 56. Madison, Wisconsin: American Society of Agronomy. pp. 279–293.Google Scholar
Bunch, R. 1994. The potential of slash/mulch for relieving poverty and environmental degradation. In Thurston, H. D., Smith, M., Abawi, G., and Kearl, S., eds. Slash/mulch: How Farmers Use It and What Researchers Know About It. Ithaca, NY: CIIFAD. pp. 5–9.Google Scholar
Carsky, R. J. 1999. Potential of herbaceous legume cover crop fallow systems in the savanna zone. In Floret, C. and Pontanier, R., eds. La jachère en Afrique tropicale: roles, aménagement, alternatives. John Libbey Eurotext: Montrouge, France. pp. 1–17.Google Scholar
Carsky, R. J. and Ndikawa, R. 1998. Screening multi-use cover crops for the Sudan savanna of northern Cameroon. In Buckles, D., Eteka, A., Galiba, M., and Galiano, G., eds. Cover Crops in West Africa: Contributing to Sustainable Agriculture. Ottawa, Canada: IDRC. pp. 179–187.Google Scholar
Carsky, R. J., Oyewole, B., and Tian, G. 1999. Integrated soil management for the savanna zone of West Africa: legume rotation and fertilizer. Nutr. Cycl. AgroecoSyst. 55: 95–105.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Carsky, R. J., Tarawali, S. A., Becker, M., Chikoye, D., Tain, G., and Sanginga, N. 1998. Mucuna: a herbaceous cover legume with potential for multiple uses. RCMD Research Monograph No. 25. Ibadan, Nigeria: International Institute of Tropical Agriculture. 52 p.Google Scholar
Chikoye, D. and Ekeleme, F. 2001. Growth characteristics of ten Mucuna accessions and their effects on the dry matter of Imperata cylindrica (L.) Rauesch. Biol. Agric. Hortic. 18: 191–201.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chikoye, D., Ekeleme, F., and Udensi, U. E. 2001. Cogongrass suppression by intercropping cover crops in corn/cassava systems. Weed Sci. 49: 658–667.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Creamer, N. G., Bennett, M. A., Stinner, B. R., Cardina, J., and Regnier, E. E. 1996. Mechanisms of weed suppression in cover crop-based production systems. Hortic. Sci. 31: 410–413.Google Scholar
Ebong, U. U. and Ononokpono, A. A. 1970. Effect of cover crops on soil fertility. Lagos, Nigeria: Federal Department of Agriculture Memorandum No. 94. 6 p.Google Scholar
Fujii, Y., Shibuya, T., and Usami, Y. 1991. Allelopathic effect of Mucuna pruriens on the appearance of weeds. Weed Res. (Tokyo) 36: 43–49.Google Scholar
Guritno, B., Sitompul, S. M., and van der Heide, J. 1992. Reclamation of alang-alang using cover crops on an ultisol in Lampung. Agrivita 15: 87–89.Google Scholar
Hairiah, K., van Noordwijk, M., and Setijono, S. 1993. Tolerance to acid soil conditions of the velvetbeans Mucuna pruriens var. utilis and M. deeringiana. II. Above-ground growth and control of Imperata cylindrica . Plant Soil 152: 175–185.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hutchinson, J. and Dalziel, J. M. 1963. Flora of West Tropical Africa. London: Millbank. 220 p.Google Scholar
IITA. 1987. Annual report. Ibadan, Nigeria: International Institute of Tropical Agriculture. 81 p.Google Scholar
Jagtap, S. S. 1995. Environmental characterization of the moist lowland savanna of Africa. In Kang, B. T., Akobundu, I. O., Manyong, V. M., Carsky, R. J., and Sanginga, N., eds. Proceedings of an International Workshop on Moist Savanna of Africa: Potentials and Constraints for Crop Production. 19–23 September; Cotonou, Republic of Benin. International Institute of Tropical Agriculture: Ibadan, Nigeria, and Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations, Rome, Italy. pp. 107–127.Google Scholar
Jongman, R. H. G., ter Braak, C. J. F., and van Tongeren, O. F. R. 1987. Data Analysis in Community and Landscape Ecology. 2nd ed. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. 299 p.Google Scholar
Kang, B. T. and van Denbelt, R. 1990. Agroforestry systems for sustained crop production in the tropics with special reference to West Africa. In Moore, E., ed. Agroforestry Land Use Systems. Proceedings of a special session on agroforestry land use systems in international agronomy of American Society of Agronomy Annual meeting; November 28–29, 1988; Waimanalo, Hawaii. American Society of Agronomy: Madison, WI. pp. 13–34.Google Scholar
Karivaratharaju, T. V., Ramakrishnan, V., Vadivelu, K. K., and Ramaswamy, K. R. 1982. Effect of seed size and seed coat colour on seed quality and productivity of red gram (Cajanus cajan L). Madras Agric. J. 69: 421–430.Google Scholar
Kolawole, G. O. and Kang, B. T. 1997. Effect of seed size and phosphorus fertilization on growth of selected legumes. Commun. Soil Sci. Plant Anal. 28: 1223–1235.Google Scholar
Lagoke, S. T. O., Parkinson, V., and Agunbiade, R. M. 1988. Parasitic weeds and control methods in Africa. In Kim, S. K., ed. Proceedings of the International Workshop on Combating Striga in Africa; August 22–24, 1988. Ibadan, Nigeria: International Institute of Tropical Agriculture. pp. 3–14.Google Scholar
Lal, R., Wilson, G. E., and Okigbo, B. N. 1979. Changes in properties of an Alfisol produced by various grasses and legume cover crops. Soil Sci. 127: 377–382.Google Scholar
Manyong, V. M., Houndékon, V. A., Sanginga, P. C., Vissoh, P., and Honlonkou, A. N. 1999. Impact: Mucuna fallow diffusion in southern Benin. Ibadan, Nigeria: International Institute of Tropical Agriculture. 21 p.Google Scholar
Okigbo, B. N. and Lal, R. 1977. Role of cover crops in soil water conservation. FAO Soils Bull. 33: 97–108.Google Scholar
Salonen, J. 1993. Weed infestation and factors affecting weed incidence in spring cereals in Finland: a multivariate approach. Agric. Sci. Finl. 2: 525–535.Google Scholar
Sanginga, N., Okogun, J. A., Akobundu, I. O., and Kang, B. T. 1996. Phosphorus requirement and nodulation of herbaceous and shrub legumes in low P soils of Guinea savanna in Nigeria. Appl. Soil Ecol. 3: 247–255.Google Scholar
Sarrantino, M. 1991. Methodologies for screening soil improving legumes. Kutztown, PA: Rodale Institute Research Center. 312 p.Google Scholar
[SAS] Statistical Analysis Systems. 1989. SAS User's Guide. Cary, NC: Statistical Analysis Institute. 956 p.Google Scholar
Tarawali, S. A. 1991. Forage legumes for subhumid west Africa: preliminary agronomic evaluation. Trop. Agric. (Trinidad) 68: 88–94.Google Scholar
Tarawali, S. A. 1994. Evaluating selected forage legumes for livestock and crop production in the subhumid zone of Nigeria. J. Agric. Sci. (Cambridge) 123: 55–60.Google Scholar
Tarawali, S. A. 1995a. Selecting and testing Stylosanthes hamata accessions for livestock and crop enterprises in subhumid Nigeria. Aust. J. Exp. Agric. 35: 375–379.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tarawali, S. A. 1995b. Evaluation of Chamaecrista rotundifolia accessions as a fodder resource in subhumid Nigeria. Trop. Grassl. 29: 129–133.Google Scholar
ter Braak, C. J. F. 1990a. CANOCO—a FORTRAN Program for Canonical Community Ordination by [partial] [detrended] [canonical] Correspondence Analysis, Principal Components Analysis and Redundancy Analysis. Version 3.10. Ithaca, NY: Microcomputer Power.Google Scholar
ter Braak, C. J. F. 1990b. Update Notes: CANONO Version 3.10. Wageningen, The Netherlands: Agricultural Mathematics Group.Google Scholar
ter Braak, C. J. F. and Prentice, I. C. 1988. A theory of gradient analysis. Adv. Ecol. Res. 18: 271–317.Google Scholar
Tian, G., Carsky, R. J., and Kang, B. T. 1998. Differential phosphorus responses of leguminous cover crops on soils with variable history. J. Plant Nutr. 21: 1641–1653.Google Scholar
Tian, G., Kang, B. T., Akobundu, I. O., and Manyong, V. M. 1995. Food production in the moist savanna of West and Central Africa. In Kang, B. T., Akobundu, I. O., Manyong, V. M., Carsky, R. J., and Sanginga, N., eds. Proceedings of an International Workshop on Moist Savanna of Africa: Potentials and Constraints for Crop Production. September 19–23; Cotonou, Republic of Benin. International Institute of Tropical Agriculture: Ibadan, Nigeria, and Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations, Rome, Italy. pp. 107–127.Google Scholar
Udensi, E. U., Akobundu, I. O., Ayeni, A. O., and Chikoye, D. 1999. Management of cogongrass (Imperata cylindrica) with velvetbean (Mucuna pruriens var. utilis) and herbicides. Weed Technol. 13: 201–208.Google Scholar
Vanangamudi, K. T., Karivaratharaju, V., and Balakrishnan, K. 1988. Physical, physiological and bio-chemical evaluation of graded seeds of pigeonpea cultivars. Madras Agric. J. 75: 5–6.Google Scholar
Weber, G., Elemo, K., and Lagoke, S. T. O. 1995. Weed communities in intensified cereal-based cropping systems of the northern Guinea savanna. Weed Res. 35: 167–178.Google Scholar
Wilson, G. F., Lal, R., and Okigbo, B. N. 1982. Effects of cover crops on soil structure and on yield of subsequent arable crops grown under strip tillage on an eroded Alfisol. Soil Till. Res. 2: 233–250.CrossRefGoogle Scholar