Abstract
Weed management in crop production has the objective of reducing plant nutrient competition with
minimal effect on soil microbial load. Hence, it is important to investigate the effect of botanicals used for
weed management in this regard. The effect of cassava effluent (CE) concentrations of 60, 120, 180 and 240
μg CN/kg (CN is a universal chemical symbol for cyanide) soil that were applied one, two, three and four
times, was evaluated on soil nutrients and microbial load in a 4 x 4 factorial arrangement. Control treatment
(without CE) was incorporated into the experiment in an incomplete factorial design. This was laid out in
completely randomized design in the screen-house. Results showed that CE concentration and frequency of
application altered the C, Ca, Mg, Na, K, Cu, Fe, Mn and Zn contents of the soil. CE concentration and
frequency of application had significant interaction (p<0.05) on all the plant nutrients analysed. CE
concentration of 60 and 120 μg CN/kg soil applied one to four times had available P concentrations lesser
than the control treatment. Contrarily, P increased by 45% when CE of 240 μg CN/kg soil was applied three
times. Significant (p<0.05) interaction between CE concentration and application frequency markedly
decreased culturable bacterial population, while fungal population was increased by some interactions. The
study concluded that application of CE for weed control has moderating effect on soil nutrients and microbial
load. Hence, its adoption for weed control requires the understanding of its influence on chemical and
biological properties of soil.
Olatunde Philip Ayodele*, Segun Oluwatomiwa Oladele. (2020) Screening of cassava effluent- a proposed weed biocontrol agent for its effect on soil nutrients and microbial population, The Journal Soil & Environment , Volume 39, Issue 1.
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