Effect of Gypsum and Coal fly ash on Germination and Stump Quality of Teak (Tectona grandis L. f. )

A nursery experiment was conducted to study the effect of gypsum and coal fly ash on germination and stump quality of teak seedling. The preconditioned 8 months-old teak drupes (fruit with seed) were placed for germination in the nursery bed. The experiment consists of seven treatments which were replicated thrice. On 28 and 60 days after sowing, the results revealed that the application of gypsum at 1.5 t ha-1 did not have any significant effect on number of seedlings/m2 of teak at 28 days after sowing, whereas, the significant influence were observed at 60 days after sowing. Significant differences were also observed in root length, shoot length, number of leaves/ seedlings, stump girth and drymatter production of stump at 6 months after sowing. From this study, it could be concluded that the surface application of gypsum at 1.5 t ha-1 in teak nursery bed enhanced the seedling growth and stump quality of 6 months-old teak nursery plants.

126 Effect of Biolex™ Feed Additive on Nursery and Wean-To-Finish Pig Performance

Two experiments were conducted to determine the effects of Biolex™ feed additive (BioMatrix International, Princeton, MN) on growth performance of wean-to-finish (Experiment 1) and nursery (Experiment 2) pigs. Experiment 1 utilized 352 crossbred pigs (5.78 kg BW) allotted to pens (11 pigs/pen; 16 reps/trt) on d 0 and fed a common diet for 28 d. On d 28, pens were assigned randomly to 1 of 2 dietary treatments. The two dietary treatments consisted of a fortified corn-soybean meal-DDGS based diet serving as the control and the control diet + Biolex™ (0.10%). Pigs were fed in 5 dietary nursery and 6 finishing phases. Feed disappearance and BW were recorded to calculate ADG, ADFI, and G:F. Data were analyzed using the MIXED procedure in SAS with pen serving as the experimental unit. There were no differences (P > 0.10) in final BW (137 vs. 138 kg), ADG (793 vs. 799 g/d), or ADFI (1.96 vs. 1.93 kg); however, pigs fed Biolex™ had improved (P = 0.02) G:F (0.40 vs. 0.41). Biolex™ tended to increase (P = 0.08) loin depth and numerically improve (P = 0.12) percent lean. In Experiment 2, 280 crossbred pigs (5.44 kg BW) were utilized in a 42-d experiment. Pigs were allotted to pens (10 pigs/pen; 14 reps/trt) on d 0 and fed a common diet for 21 d. On d 21, pens were assigned randomly to two dietary treatments. The two dietary treatments consisted of 1) Control and 2) Control + Biolex™ (0.10%). In Experiment 2, there was no difference (P > 0.10) in ADG (367 vs. 372 g/d), ADFI (507 vs. 504 g), or G:F (0.72 vs. 0.74) between diets. These results suggest that Biolex™ fed to nursery and wean-to-finish pigs has no effect on ADG or ADFI but improved G:F in wean-to-finish.

Effect of Different Organic Addition on Seedling Growth and Stump Quality of Teak (Tectona grandis Linn f.)

A nursery experiment was conducted to study the effect of different organic addition in the nursery on growth and stump quality of teak seedling. The nursery soil sample was analyzed before initiate the experiment and after uprooting the seedling from nursery (post harvest soil). The pre conditioned 6 months-old teak drupes (fruit with seed) were placed for germination in the nursery bed. The experiment consisted of eight treatments which replicated thrice. On 28 and 60 days after sowing, the result revealed that the application of organic amendments did not have any significant effect on number of seedlings /m2 of teak at 28 days after sowing, where as the significant influence were observed at 60 days after sowing. Significant differences were observed in root length (cm), shoot length (cm), stump weight (g), stump girth (mm) and dry matter production (g) of teak stump at 6 months after sowing. From this study it could be concluded that the organic addition of teak nursery with FYM @ 12.5 t ha-1 + bagasse fly ash @ 20 t ha-1 enhance the seedling growth and stump quality of 6 months old teak nursery.

Effect of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi Based Biofertilizer on Coconut Seedlings Growth in Nursery

The success of a coconut plantation, in terms of its field establishment as well as its future performance, is heavily dependent on the quality of the seedlings used. Coconut nurseries adopt different agronomic practices to produce good quality seedlings. Applying mycorrhizal inoculants is becoming an increasingly common practice in plant nurseries as it facilitates healthy seedling growth resulting in healthy and vigorous seedlings in the nursery, helps to reduce mortality rates of seedlings in the field and reduce water and fertilizer consumption. In this study effects of mycorrhizae based biofertilizer were evaluated for the growth of coconut seedlings in the nursery and field. The experiment was conducted at the Makadura Research Center in Sri Lanka. The nursery experiment treatments were, the presence of AMF based biofertilizer (50g per seedling or per bag) and absence of mycorrhizae based biofertilizer. In the field experiment, five treatments with 500g of AMF biofertilizerwith 25% recommended inorganic fertilizer mixture for young coconut palms (YPM) per seedling, 500g of AMF biofertilizer with 50% YPM per seedling, 500g of AMF biofertilizer with 75% YPM per seedling, 500g of AMF biofertilizer with 100% YPM per seedling and with only YPM per seedling. Root and shoot growth of seedlings were measured at monthly intervals in the nursery experiment. Leaf production rate and stem girth of the seedling were measured at six months interval in the field experiment. The application of bio fertilizer increased the volume and dry weight of primary, secondary, tertiary and quaternary roots in seedlings in the nursery significantly. A significantly higher leaf production rate and stem girth was observed in the field seedlings treatment with 500g of AMF biofertilizer with 75% YPM. The experiment concluded that application of bio fertilizer is beneficial for coconut seedlings in the nursery for the production good quality seedlings with well-developed roots resulting in better field establishment and in the field for fast and vigorous growth.