Genotypic Variation in Yield and Yield Components of Plantain (<I>Musa</I>spp.) in Response to Containerized Planting Material and Mulching

The study was conducted to evaluate the field performance of local plantain genotypes;Apem, Oniaba, Apantu (AAB) and FHIA 21 (AAAB) suckers that were raised in containers (polybags) and their corresponding conventional suckers. Half of the containerized and conventional suckers in each plot were mulched with empty fruit bunch (EFB). Survival rate three months after transplanting was higher in containerized (100%) than conventional materials (60%) with or without mulching. Mulching increased the girth at flowering and total leaf area by 8% and 28% respectively, and reduced the number of days to flowering. Mulching also increased yield of plantain and the highest was recorded in FHIA 21. Bunch yield of container raised suckers per hectare was 19% greater than conventional suckers, due to higher survival rate after transplanting. Bunch yield among the genotypes in decreasing order was as follows, FHIA21 (20.7), Oniaba (16.9), Apem (15.9) and Apantu (13.2) tons/ha. Mulching increased the yield components such as, pulp weight, peel weight, finger weight and number of fingers. Genotypic variation in pulp yield was in the following decreasing order Apantu > FHIA 21 > Oniaba > Apem fresh weight. The pulp to peel ratio was in the following decreasing order Apantu > FHIA 21 > Apem > Oniaba. It is concluded that raising plantain suckers in polybags and applying EFB mulch is an improved production technique.

Effect of Plant Density on the Yield of Hydroponically Grown Heat-Tolerant Tomato under Summer Temperature Conditions

Producing enough tomato to meet market demand sustainably has not been feasible in the tropics like Ghana. Attempts to improve production using greenhouse facilities have not addressed the challenge because of high-temperature conditions in the greenhouse, which are difficult to manage. Heat stress, arising from high temperatures, hinder the performance of tomato in terms of fruit set and yield. Moreover, the impending climate change is expected to impose more unfavorable environmental conditions on crop production. An experiment was conducted in (greenhouse at Chiba University, Japan) summer period, which has similar high-temperature conditions like Ghana. This work sought to increase the yield of a heat-tolerant tomato using a state-of-the-art hydroponic system through high-density planting. The outcome of this work was intended for adoption and practice in Ghana. A Heat-tolerant tomato “Nkansah HT” along with Lebombo and Jaguar cultivars, were grown at high and low plant densities (4.1 and 2.7 plants m-2 respectively). Each plant was grown in a low substrate volume culture (0.5 L plant-1) in a recirculating nutrient film technique (NFT) hydroponic system. Parameters measured were plant growth and dry matter assimilation at 12 weeks after transplanting, and the generative components. Results showed that a high plant density increased plant height but reduced chlorophyll content by 9.6%. Under temperature stress conditions, the three cultivars recorded more than 95% fruit set, but plant density did not affect the fruit set and the incidence of blossom end rot (BER). The incidence of BER reduced the marketable yield of the Jaguar cultivar by 51% but, this physiological disorder was not recorded in the HT and the Lebombo cultivars. A high-density planting increased the yield per unit area increased by 38.9%. However, it is uneconomical to cultivate the Jaguar cultivar under a heat stress condition due to its high susceptibility to blossom end rot. To improve the yield of tomatoes under tropical heat stress with a threatening climate change condition, the HT is a better cultivar suited for high-density planting. This study shows that high-density cultivation of the HT cultivar in NFT hydroponic system has the potential to increase Ghana’s current tomato yield by 4.8 times.