EFFECT OF PEANUT PLANTS INCORPORATED AS GREEN MANURE ON THE GROWTH AND GRAIN-YIELD OF SUCCEEDING WHEAT

Field experiments were conducted to determine the effect of peanut cro p incorporated as green manure on the growth, total dry weight and gra in yield of succeeding wheat. Growth of wheat was improved in treatmen ts where peanut plants were incorporated as green manure resulting in an increase in total yield and grain yield of wheat. Total yield and g rain yield were significantly (P less than or equal to 0.05) higher in all the treatments of peanut fields than the corresponding treatments of fallow fields. This indicates the significant role of nodulated pe anut plants in improving the yield of a succeeding wheat crop. When us ed in a rotation system, peanut may contribute significant amounts of nitrogen to the system and reduce the requirements for fertilizers con siderably, especially for smallholder farmers. More information is req uired on agronomic and agricultural aspects of nodulated plants to ena ble the symbiotic system to be exploited to its maximum. The need is a lso appropriate for a more skillful blending of fertilizer nitrogen an d fixed nitrogen particularly in sustainable agricultural systems.