Effects of Nitrogen Fertilizer on Yields and Quality of Selected Rice Varieties at Mwea Irrigation Scheme, Kirinyaga County, Kenya

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dc.contributor.authorNjinju, Symon Mugo
dc.date.accessioned2019-03-22T08:11:46Z
dc.date.available2019-03-22T08:11:46Z
dc.date.issued2018-11
dc.descriptionA Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Award of Degree of Master of Science (Agronomy) in the School of Agriculture and Enterprise Development, Kenyatta University, Kenyaen_US
dc.description.abstractRice is a staple food and the main source of calories and proteins for more than half of the world population. Its increasing demand in Africa made it a commodity for food security and poverty reduction. Rice ranks third in Kenya’s staple food after maize and wheat. Its consumption has been growing rapidly due to urbanization and changing eating habits in both rural and urban households. In 2014, local rice production was estimated at 129,000 metric tonnes, while consumption was 548,000 metric tonnes. Increased production is required in order to meet the huge deficit. Similar to other countries, yield of rice in Kenya can be increased by selecting appropriate high yielding varieties and conducting appropriate cultivation practices particularly planting time and nitrogen management which in addition is thought to impact on grain quality. The objective of the study was to investigate the effect of Nitrogen fertilization on growth, yields and quality of three rice varieties namely Basmati370, BW196 and IR72. Field experiments were conducted at Kirogo Farm in KALRO Mwea, Kirinyaga County in two seasons. The first season was from the month of February to June, 2014 while the second season was from January to June, 2015. The trial was a split plot arrangement in a randomized complete block design (RCBD) replicated three times. Rice varieties (Basmati370, BW196 and IR72) formed the main plot while fertilizer rates (75 Kg N ha-1, 125 Kg N ha-1, 175 Kg N ha-1 and 225 Kg N ha-1) were the sub-plots. Soil sampling was done before planting in order to establish the Nitrogen status of the site. Parameters examined were plant height, tiller number, Soil-plant analysis development (SPAD) value, filled grain ratio and yield components. Grain quality was determined by proximate analysis. The data was subjected to Analysis of Variance using SAS version 8.2 statistical package. The results indicated that the shoot dry weight, SPAD and total grain number increased while the grain yield did not increase as the N-fertilizer was increased. The filled grains decreased with increase of the fertilizer. There were lower yields in season two due to low temperatures at grain filling. The percent crude proteins in the milled grains increased while crude oil decreased with increase of nitrogen. There was no significant difference in grain quality between the three rice varieties though BW196 (6.95%) had the highest crude proteins followed by Basmati370 (6.80%) and IR72 (6.72%), respectively. This study showed that it is possible to increase grain yield, yield components and quality by increasing Nitrogen fertilizer amount with appropriate management. Different varieties need Nitrogen at different times while Basmati370 and BW196 are susceptible to cold weather. Further work is necessary to address these findings. This information will be useful to the researchers for recommendation to the farmers in order to improve on rice cultivation for increased yields and income at household level in Kenyaen_US
dc.description.sponsorshipKenyatta Universityen_US
dc.identifier.urihttp://ir-library.ku.ac.ke/handle/123456789/19250
dc.language.isoenen_US
dc.publisherKenyatta Universityen_US
dc.titleEffects of Nitrogen Fertilizer on Yields and Quality of Selected Rice Varieties at Mwea Irrigation Scheme, Kirinyaga County, Kenyaen_US
dc.typeThesisen_US
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