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1 Journal home page: INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF INNOVATIVE AND APPLIED RESEARCH RESEARCH ARTICLE The effect of different agronomic practices for optimum production of yield and yield components of castor/ricinuscommunis/ Metasebia Terefe, Ahmed Ibrahim, Abiy Tilahun and Kedir Shifa Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research Center, Melkassa Agricultural Research Center, P. O. Box-436, Melkassa, Ethiopia. Abstract: Determination of planting space, planting date and leaf harvesting date for castor (Ricinus communis L.) is very important for obtaining optimum leaf yield for the production of Eri-Silkworm (Samia cynthia ricini B.). These experiments were conducted to find out intra and inter row spacing, planting dateand appropriate leaf harvesting dates of improved castor leaf productivity. Four within plant spacing (50, 75, 100 and 100cm) and three inter- row spacing (120, 100 and 75 cm) were arranged in factorial combination (12 treatment combinations) in RCBD design in three replications for spacing trial. Whilst, for Planting of castor at different season (3 rd - 4 th week of May, 1 st - 2 nd week of June, 3 rd - 4 th week of June, 1 st - 2 nd week of July, 3 rd - 4 th week of July, 1 st - 2 nd week of August) and leaf harvesting date at 10, 12, 14, 16, 20 weeks after planting of castor. All experiments were carried out for three years ( ) at Melkassa Agricultural Research Center (MARC).The result showed that significantly (P<0.05) higher number of fresh leaf weight (13295 kg/ha) and dry leaf weight (2912 kg/ha) were observed from 50 cm within plant and 75cm inter- row spacing. However, the least fresh (6376 kg/ha) and dry leaf weight (1460 kg/ha) were observed from combination of 120cm with 120 cm spacing. Whereas, planting of castor at 3 rd -4 th week of June (366.7g) and leaf harvesting at 10 weeks after planting gave high leaf yield (326 g-417 g). Therefore, a plant and row spacing or treatment combinations of 50 cm x 75 cm or a plant population of about plants per hectare, planting interval between 3 rd -4 th week of June to 1 st to 2 nd weeks of July and starting of leaf harvesting at 10 weeks after planting can be used for optimum leaf production for better eri silk worm production. Key Words: Castor (Ricinus communis L.), Spacing, Planting date, leaf harvesting date, leaf production Introduction Castor (Ricinuscommunis)of afamily Euphorbiaceae is flowering plant of the ancient oilseed crops and the major feed plant for the production of eri-silkworm, Samia cynthia which belong to family saturnidae. Erisilkwormisamong the commercially exploited silkworm species and can be reared in doors throughout the year to produce silk (Joshi, 1992). Castor is indigenous to the southeastern Mediterranean Basin, Eastern Africa (including Ethiopia) and India, bu it is widespread throughout tropical regions. Castor has also established in waste accumulation areas, the edges of cultivated fields and canal banks, etc (Zimmerman et al., 1958). Castor can also be considered as commercial crop from seed and sericulture businesses. Its seed contains % oil (Weiss, 1971). Though, eri-silkworm is multivoltine feeding on a wide range of feed plants, castor serves as primary food plant (Singh and Das 2006). Reddy et al. (1989b) recorded higher survival rate, maximum growth index, higher shell ratio, higher net reproductive rate and shorter developmental period, when eri-silkworms were reared on castor. Devaiah et al. (1985) also reported that castor is the best host plant affecting the larval weight, silk gland weight, cocoon weight and shell weight considerably. Hence, determination of optimum plant population, planting and leaf harvesting date for castor is important to obtain optimum leaf yield for the production of silk. However, very little information is available on the agronomic/cultural practices of castor for better production of leaf. Therefore, this study was conducted to find out optimum intra and inter row spacing, planting and appropriate leaf harvesting dates for improved castor leaf productivity. 17

2 Materials and Methods Description of the study area The experiment was conducted at Melkassa Agricultural Research Center from It is found 117 kms away from Addis Ababa and 17 km to South-East of Nazareth in the East-Shewa zone of Oromia Region. It is located 8 24'N latitude and 39 12'E longitude at elevation of 1500 meters above sea level and a mean annual rainfall of 770 mm. Preparation of land MARC experimental field was used for planting of seeds of castor. Prior to planting, the land was prepared by ploughing, digging and leveling. Two seeds of castor per hole at a time were planted at the onset of the rain. The land was provided with supplemental irrigation for spacing and leaf harvesting trials. However, for assessing the production of castor during rainy season for the use of farmers who do not have the access of irrigation, supplementary water was not provided for planting date trials. Castor seed was planted at a spacing of 75cm x 75cm. Treatments include: - Spacing Trial: Four within plant spacing (intra row spacing) (50, 75, 100 and 120cm) and three inter- row spacing (120, 100 and 75 cm) were arranged in factorial combination (12 treatment combinations) in RCBD design with 3 replications. Leaf harvesting date trial: 10, 12, 14, 16, 18 and 20 weeks after planting were used as treatments and it was arranged in RCBD design with 3 replications. Planting date trial: 3 rd - 4 th week of May, 1 st - 2 nd week of June, 3 rd - 4 th week of June, 1 st - 2 nd week of July, 3 rd - 4 th week of July and 1 st - 2 nd week of August were used as treatments and RCBD design in 3 replications. Data collection Agronomic parameters like, plant height, number of leaves per plant, number of primary and secondary branches, fresh and dry leaf weight etc were recorded. Data analysis The data were subjected to analysis of variance (ANOVA) using Statistical Analysis Software (Gomez and Gomez, 1984) (version 9.00, SAS, Institute Inc., Cary, NC, USA). Treatment means were separated using the least significant differences (LSD). Results and Discussion In the present study, significant differences (p<0.05) between treatments were observed: spacing, leaf harvesting and planting dates in selected parameters such as plant height, number of leaf production, fresh and dry leaf weight. Significantly (P<0.05) higher number of fresh (13,295 kg/ha) and dry leaf weight (2,912 kg/ha) were observed from 50 cm plant and 75cm row spacing (Table 2). However, the least fresh (6,376 kg/ha) and dry leaf weight (1,460 kg/ha) were observed from combination of 120cm with 120 cm spacing (Table 2).These results are in accordance with the findings of Rao (1988). Determination of plant population, planting and leaf harvesting date for castor is very important for obtaining optimum leaf yield for the production of reasonable amount of cocoon. It can be maximized by using optimum plant population, appropriate planting/sowing date, quality seed and recommended fertilizer rate and weeding practices. Practicing optimum spacing can significantly improve leaf yield. Kittock and Williams (1970), studied the effect of plant population on the yield and yield components of castor in irrigated and non-irrigated castor and showed the optimum plant population of dwarf irrigated castor was 55,000 plants/ha. Row spacing from 0.5m to 1m did not affect yield if plant population was held constant or narrow intra row spacing. Solomon 1988, tested the castor plants vary in size from short annuals to small tree like plants, therefore, row and plant spacing will have significant effect on yield and yield components. Getnetet al. also revealed, 80cm row with 50 cm plant spacing is optimum for top branching castor of Hiruy variety. The current study showed that, plant and row spacing/ treatment combinations of 75 cm x 50cm or a plant population of about 26,670 plants per hectare gave better results as compared to the other combinations. Ghose and Patra (1994) also reported, the closer crop geometry of 90 x 90 cm noted perceptibly higher leaf area index and at harvest stages, respectively, compared to all other treatments imposed. The treatment with wider square planting of 150 x 150 cm with 125% NK application and mechanical weeding registered persistently lower leaf area index at all the crop growth stages of crop growth. The increase in leaf area index under closer spacing throughout the growth period was due to increased number of plants unit area-1 and in turn more number of leaves unit area-1. 18

3 For leaf harvesting and planting dates, the stage of growth at harvesting and method of harvesting have great impact on final yield. There were no significant differences in treatments observed in all the parameters during various leaf harvesting period. The data indicated that from 10 weeks up to 20 weeks after planting, did not have any variability on plant height, number of leaves and branch (Table 4). However, leaf harvesting date at, significant differences (P<0.05) was observed in 20 weeks after planting between treatments in terms of fresh and dry leaf weight. Leaf harvesting dates from 10 to 18 weeks gave similar yield in fresh (4438 to 6441 kg/ha) and dry leaf weight (2521 to 3709 kg/ha). With regard to biotic factors, rust was the major disease in all the treatments and there was a reduction of edible leaf area (up to 57%) for silk worms in all the years of the experiment The three years results showed that starting of first leaf harvesting of castor at 10 weeks after planting is advisable for the feed of erisilkworms to obtain the optimum production of cocoon. Moreover, in planting date, significant differences (P<0.05) were observed among treatments in the study period. Optimum sowing dates were studied for most oil seeds at major growing areas (Nigussie et al 1992a). The recommended sowing dates for oilseeds are still good information during normal/good years although, range of sowing dates were identified no one can be certain whether there will be sufficient moisture or not during that period. Sowing between late June to early July for higher altitudes (> 2000masl) mid to late June for the lower altitudes(< 2000 masl) areas in the central highlands mid July, Western and South-western and early to mid July for the North western were found optimum for the production of late maturing(hiruy 1988). Although a range of sowing dates should be identified, no one can be certain whether there will be sufficient moisture or not during that period. Planting date at 1 st -2 nd week of Juneto 1 st -2 nd week of July gave higher and equal amount of fresh and dry leaf weight, plant height, production of branch, number of capsule and seed weight as compare to other treatments (Table 6). Though, significant differences were not observed among treatments in infestation of rust disease on castor. Our findings are in line with Reddy et al. (2007) who reported that castor crop sown during July gave the highest yield as compared to the crop sown in August. Planting of castor at 3 rd -4 th week of June gave maximum leaf yield (25 leaf/plant). Whereas, planting at 3 rd -4 th week of July and 1 st -2 nd week of August gave least and equal amount of fresh and dry weight. Sowing date and seed rate trials on rape seed of Castor conducted during 1970 to 1982 showed that yields were high when planted during the onset of the main rainy season (end of May to late of June)(Nigussie, et al 1992a) which was in agreement with our findings. Table 1. Mean effect of row and plant spacing on plant height and number of leaf per plant of castor variety, grown at Melkassa Intra Row Inter Row Plant Height (cm) and number of leaf per plant, respectively Mean spacing in cm ab 26.6a 105bcd 26.7a 118ab 25.7 a cd 27a 100cd 24.8 a 106bcd 22.8 a d 22.8a 95cd 25.9a 101cd 24.8a cd 25 a 123a 23.7 a 110abc 26.7 a Mean The same letters in the same column means there is no significant difference ( p>0.05). Table 2. Mean effect of row and plant spacing on fresh and dry leaf weight castor variety, grown at Melkassa Intra Row Inter Row Spacing (cm) in fresh and dry leaf weight (kg/ha), respectively Spacing Mean (cm) ab 2055bc 10081ab 2304ab 13295a 2912a b 1896bc 9182ab bc 10437ab 2335ab b bc 7467b 1775bc 7969b abc b 1460c 8628b 1598bc 8669b 1715bc Mean The same letters in the same column means there is no significant difference ( p>0.05). 19

4 Table-3 Mean effect of planting dates on agronomic and yield characters of castor at Melkassa PD PH (cm) NLPP NB FLW ( kg/ha) 1 0ry 2 ry DLW(kg/ha) SY (tha -1 ) DI (%) DS (%) NS 3 rd -4 th week of May 1 st -2 nd week of June 3 rd -4 th week of June 1 st -2 nd week of July 3 rd -4 th week of July 1 st -2 nd week of August 138bc 19b 5.8b 2ab 6135bc 1481ab 1.1a 20b ab 23ab 8b 3.2a ab 1867a 1.3a 30a a 25a 6.5ab 1.9b 8223a a 1.2a 27.7ab abc 18bc 5b 2.2a 7432ab 1977a 1.1a 25.7ab cd 14cd 4.7b 1.4bc 4212cd 1138bc 0.8b 24ab 15 83d 10d 2.9c 0.7c 3609d 764c 0.6b 26ab LSD CV NB:PD=Planting dates, PH=Plant height, NLPP= Number of leaf per plant, NB=Number of branch, FLW=Fresh leaf weight, DLW=Dry leaf weight, SY=Seed yield, DI= Disease incidence, DS= Disease severity, the same letters in the same column means there is no significant difference ( p>0.05). Table-4 Mean effect of leaf harvesting date on agronomic and yield characters of castor at Melkassa LHD (Weeks) PH (cm) NLPP NB FLW ( kg/ha) DLW ( kg/ha) DI (%) 1 0ry branch 2 ry branch SY (tha -1 ) DS (%) ab a 3620a ab ab a 3209a ab b ab 2564ab ab a a 3709a b a ab 2521ab ab ab b 1752b a 55 LCD CV NB: LHD=Leaf harvesting date, PH=Plant height, NLPP= Number of leaf per plant, NB=Number of branch, FLW=Fresh leaf weight, DLW=Dry leaf weight, NCPP=Number of capsule per plant, SY=Seed yield, SW= Seed weight, DI= Disease incidence, DS= Disease severity, Means within the same column with a common letter are not significantly different (P<0.05), the same letters in the same column means there is no significant difference ( p>0.05). Conclusion The experimental results enlightened that there was marked variations on the productivity of castor due to spacing, planting and leaf harvesting dates.therefore, from the three years result it can be conclude, combination of 50 cm x 75 cm,planting of castor at 3 rd -4 th week of June to 1-2 nd week of July and beginning of leaf harvesting at 10 weeks after plantingis advisable to obtain optimum leaf yield of castor for the feed plants of eri silkworm foroptimum silk productionin Central Rift Valley of Ethiopia. Moreover, these experiments should be tested in different agroecologies of the country for the wider production of castor. Acknowledgments We would like to acknowledge Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research (EIAR) especially Melkassa Agricultural Research Center (MARC) for covering all the costs of the study and providing facilities. We would also like to acknowledge all MARC laboratory staff for their cooperative during the period of the study. 20

5 References Dvaiah, M.C., Rajashekar, G.R, Yelshetty, S. and Govindan, R Growth and Silk Production in Samia cynthiaricini Boisduval (Lepidoptera: Saturniidae) Fed on Four Different Host Plants. Indian J. Seric.,24, GetnetAlemaw, Abel Moges and DegeneAbera, Effect of Plant and Row Spacing on the yield and Oil Contents of castor (Ricinuscommunis L.) in the Central Rift Valley, Ethiopia. Eth. J. Agric. Sci. 24: Gomez, K.A., and Gomez, A.A., Statistical Procedures for Agricultural Research, 2 nd End. John Willey and Sons, New York. Ghose, D.C. and A.K. Patra Effect of plant density and fertility levels on productivity and economics on summer sesame (Sesamum indicuml.). Indian J. Agron., 39: Hiruy Belayneh, Niger seed in Ethiopia: history, research and improvement prospect, Proceedings of the 19th Crop Improvement Conference April 1987 Addis Abeba Ethiopia. Joshi, K.L., Evaluation of Diets for Larvae of the Eri Silkworm, Samia cynthia ricini(lepidoptera: Saturniidae). Ind. J. Seric. 31: Kittock D.L. and J.H. Williams Effects of Plant Population on Castor bean yield. Agronomy Journal. 62: Nigussie Alemayehu and Yershanew Ashagrie, 1992a. Noug Agronomy Research in Ethiopia in Oilseeds research and development in Ethiopia, pp Proceedings of the First National Oilseeds Workshop, 3-5 December 1991, Addis Abeba, Ethiopia Rao, P Production trends of high density grain as influenced by nitrogen, season, crop canopy and duration of low land irrigated paddy. Oryza., 25: Ghose, D.C. and A.K. Patra Effect of plant density and fertility levels on productivity and economics on summer sesame (Sesamum indicum L.). Indian J. Agron., 39: Reddy D. N. R., Kotikal, Y. K. and Vijayendra, M., 1989b. Development and Silk Yield of Eri Silkworm, Samia cynthia ricini (Lepidoptera:Saturnidae) as Influenced by the Food Plants, Mysore J. agric. Sci., 23: Reddy, U. V. B., G. P. Reddy and D. S. Reddy Yield and oil content of castor varieties as influenced by planting dates. Indian J. Dryland Agri. Res. Dev., 22(1): Severino L.S., Dick, L. Auld, Marco Baldanzi, J.D. MagnoCandido, Grace Chen, Willian Crosby, Tan D. Xiaohua He, P. Lakshmamma, C. Lavanya, Olga L.T. Machado, Thomas Mielke, MairaMilani, Travis D. Miller, J.B. Morris, Stephen A. Morse, Alejanndro A. Navas, Dartanha J. Soars, ValdineiSofiatti, Ming L. Wang, Mauricio D. Zanotto and HelgeZielder A Review on the challenges for Increased Production of Castor. Agronomy Journal 104 (4): Solomon Eshete., Sunflower (Helianthus annus L.) research achievements and future prospects Proceedings of the 19th Crop Improvement Conference April 1987 Addis Ababa Ethiopia, pp SorattoR.P., Low-height castor bean row spacing and plant population for mechanical harvest. PesquisaAgropecuariaBrasileira, 46 (3):

6 Singh, B. K. and Das, P. K. (2006) Prospects and problems for development of eri culture in non- traditionalstates. Proceeding of Regional seminar on Prospects and problems of sericulture an economic enterprise in NorthWest India. Held at Dehradun 11th -12th November, pp Weiss E.A., Oil seed Crops, Second Edition, Blackwell Science Ltd, Oxford, England. Zimmerman, L.H., Miller, M.D. and Knowles, P.F., Castor bean in California. Calif. Agr. Expt. Sta. pp