Asian Journal of Current Research

This study evaluated the effects of varying poultry manure (PM) concentrations mixed with loamy soil (LS) on plumule emergence, seedling growth and early reproductive performance of Capsicum chinense. A completely randomised design (CRD) comprising seven treatments was used: 10% PM + 90% LS, 20% PM + 80% LS, 30% PM + 70% LS, 40% PM + 60% LS, 50% PM + 50% LS, 100% loamy soil (control 1) and 100% poultry manure (control 2), with five replicates per treatment. Data were collected on seedling emergence, plant height, stem girth, number of leaves, leaf area, number of flowers and number of fruits for 12 weeks after transplanting. PM concentration significantly influenced all measured parameters. The highest seedling emergence (60%) occurred in the 10% PM + 90% LS and LS-only treatments, whereas no emergence occurred in PM alone. At week 12, the greatest plant height was recorded in 20% PM + 80% LS (70.00 cm), followed by 10% PM + 90% LS (56.00 cm); the LS-only treatment recorded a moderate height (35.00 cm). Stem girth, number of leaves and leaf area were highest in 10% PM + 90% LS (3.90 cm, 133 leaves and a peak leaf area of 62.70 cm², respectively). Treatments containing ≥30% PM showed poor emergence and cessation of growth during the early weeks. Flowering and fruiting were most pronounced in 10% PM + 90% LS, with peaks of 30 flowers and 16 fruits, respectively, whereas the other treatments produced few or no reproductive structures. Overall, the findings indicate that 10% PM mixed with 90% LS provided the most favourable conditions for plumule emergence, vegetative growth and early reproductive development of Capsicum chinense, whereas higher PM concentrations adversely affected performance.