AUTHOR=Naabe Yaro Richard , Rufai Mahama Ahmed , Kugbe Joseph Xorse , Berdjour Albert 

TITLE=Response of Peanut Varieties to Phosphorus and Rhizobium Inoculant Rates on Haplic Lixisols of Guinea Savanna Zone of Ghana

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems

VOLUME=Volume 5 - 2021

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/sustainable-food-systems/articles/10.3389/fsufs.2021.616033

DOI=10.3389/fsufs.2021.616033

ISSN=2571-581X

ABSTRACT=Peanut forms a major component of the predominantly cereal-based farming systems in northern Ghana. However, there is limited quantitative data on the effects of phosphorus (P) and rhizobium inoculant (IR) on growth, nodulation and yield of peanut varieties. On-station and On-farm experiments were conducted to determine the interaction effects of three P rates (0, 30 and 60 kg P2O5/ha), three IR rates (0, 3 and 6 g/kg seed) and two peanut varieties (Chinese and Nkatie SARI) on growth, nodulation and yield of peanut on Haplic Lixisols of northern Ghana. Both experiments were conducted using a split-split plot design replicated three times for the On-station experiment and on six farmer’s fields (On-farm experiment). In both experiments, combined application of 60 kg P2O5/ha and IR at 6 g/kg seed increased pod number in Nkatie SARI and Chinese compared to their control counterparts. PR x V interaction influenced growth, effective nodule number and podding capacity with 60 kg P2O5/ha combining with Nkatie SARI to produced significantly higher values. The interaction of IR x V improved pod number, nodule number and Harvest index, such that inoculant at 6 g/kg seed combined with Nkatie SARI to give the best performance. PR x IR also had a significant interactive influence on peanut grain yield. Higher grain yields were recorded from 60 kg P2O5/ha in combination 6 g/kg seed of rhizobium inoculant. Therefore, this result suggests that the use of P fertilizer at 60 kg/ha and rhizobium inoculant at 6 g/kg seed appears to increase peanut productivity on Haplic Lixisols in northern Ghana and similar ecologies in West Africa.