The greenhouse and field trials were carried out at Faculty of Agriculture, University of Benin,
Benin City to find out the residual influence of Pb on some
Telfairia occidentalis
agronomic characters and soil
chemical properties. The soils used were previously treated with 0, 50, 100, 200 mg per 5 kg soil in the greenhouse
while 0, 20, 40, 80 kgha
-1 equivalent to that of greenhouse were used in the field trial. The soils were previously
used for
Telfairia occidentalis cultivation. The completely randomized and randomized complete block designs
were used in greenhouse and field trials respectively. Results indicated that with the exception of N and K in the
field trial all other soil nutrient components decreased inconsistently with increased Pb concentrations in the trials
compared to pre-trial soil nutrient content. The Pb, N, P, K, Mg, Ca, Na, Fe, Mn, Zn and their uptake by the plant
decreased significantly with increase in Pb concentrations. The crude protein content of the plant also reduced
significantly with increased Pb concentrations. The dry matter yield, plant height, stem girth and number of leaves
were depressed significantly by the Pb compared to the control.
