STUDY ON THE EFFECT OF DIFFERENT CONCENTRATION OF DRUMSTICK ( Moringa oleifera ) LEAF EXTRACT ON SEED GERMINATION AND EARLY GROWTH OF WATER MELLON (Citrullus lanatu)

¹Karaye I.U. , ² Shehu A., ²Sulaiman B. and ²Hannatu M.L

¹Depertment of Biological Sciences Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto, Nigeria.

²Department of Biology Shehu Shagari College of Education, Sokoto

Email address: abusahmad@yahoo.com

ABSTRACT

A study on the effect Moringa Oleifera leaf extract on Citrullus lanatus was carried out at the Biological Garden of Usman Danfodiyo University, Sokoto. The aim was to determine the effect of Moringa leaf extract at different concentration on seed germination and early seedling growth of C. Lanatus (water Mellon). Aqueous extract was prepared by driving freshly leaf formed Moringa leaves e water and filtered out to obtain liquid extract which was then diluted with water in the following concentrations: 0ml, 20ml, 40ml, 60ml, 80ml. control treatment was set up using disliked water only. The six treatment were applied directly on C. lanatus seeds raised in 18 poly pots of 18cm long 2cm wide. The experiment was laid out in a completely randomize design in three (3) replicate. It was run for 15 days. Data were collected on number of leaves, stem high, root length, shoots fresh and dry weight at harvest, while germination rate was within 15 days of the experiment and where subjected to analysis of varience. Result obtain showed significant (P˂ 0.05) effect of the treatment on all the characters measured. Base on the results obtain, Moringa leaf extract has an improving effect on seed germination and growth of C. lanatus parts farmers are therefore recommended to adopt the use of this extract since it is easier, inexpensive, cheaper and can be obtain in large quantities in order to meet up demand of large hectares of land. 

Keywords: Moringa, Leaf, Citrillus, Melon, Extraction, Seed, Germination