Browsing by Author "Awodoyin, Rasheed Olufemi"

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    Nutrient Content and Performance of the Herbaceous Legume Tephrosia Bracteolata in Relation to the Grass Andropogon Tectorum in both Natural Habitat and Pot Culture in Southwestern Nigeria.
    (International Society for Tropical Ecology, 1990) Isichei, Augustine O.; Awodoyin, Rasheed Olufemi
    Tephrosia bracteoluta, an annual herbaceous legume (sub-family Papilioniodeae), occurs extensively in the savanna zone of West Africa. It is palatable to livestock. Its accumulation of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium over a growing season (in natural habitat in Southwestern Nigeria) was measured and compared with that of Andropogon tectorum, another palatable grass in the same habitat. Crude protein concentration in Tephrosia throughout the growing season is enough to meet the recommended livestock requirements, whereas the concentration in Andropogon meets this requirement only when the grass is young. Tephrosia and Andropogon were positively associated in natural habitat Competition between Tephrosia and Andropogon in pot culture was investigated. Both species showed a decrease in yield with increasing density, a pattern also shown for number of tillers of Andropogon and girths and heights of both plants at maturity. In the mixture the yield port plant of Andropogon was higher than in its monoculture.
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    Some Aspects of the Ecology and Biology of Tephrosia Bracteolata Perr, & Guill (Papiliooideae - Fabaceae).
    (Obafemi Awolowo University, 1986) Awodoyin, Rasheed Olufemi; Isichei, A.O.
    Some aspects of the ecology and biology of Tepharosia bracteolata, a fodder plant of the Nigerian savanna often growing in association with Andropogoneae grasses, was investigated. The seeds of the plant germinated best after 20 minutes acid treatment. Some good germination was also obtained with heat and boiling water treatment. Growth rates were better in soil enriched with phosphorus than in natural soil. Since one of the aims of the experiment was to examine the feasibility or sowing rangelands with T. bracteolata, field and laboratory studies of competition between it and Andropogon tectorum were carried out. The yields of the plants were higher when grown in mixtures than in monoculutures. Values of relative yield totals for both species were in 11 test densities greater than unity indicating mutual relationship between them. Association analysis showed that the two species were randomly distributed in the field. Soil and vegetation samplings in the field show that T. bractolata does well on acid soils with low organic carbon and nitrogen contents. The crude protein of the loaf samples (12.98%-17.98%) was adequate throughout the growing season to meet the minimal 8% crude protein requirement by animals for milk production. A. tectorum can only supply adequate protein early in the season when its crude protein ranges from 7.04% to 8.21%. Nodulation was observed in T. bracteolata. The presence of leghaemoglobin at the core of the nodules indicates effectiveness in nitrogen fixation. It is suggested that T. bracteolata can be utilized in place of imported pasture species in cropping rangelands. Also, harnessing the nitrogen fixing ability of the plant to improve soil nitrogen content could save the country part of the expenditure on nitrogen fertilizer importation and could reduce environmental pollution resulting from excessive use of the fertilizers.