Growth performance of selected tropical forest tree species as influenced by potting media containing garbage

摘要

The present investigations were carried out in the College of Forestry, Kerala Agricultural University, Vellanikkara, to find out the effect of various potting media containing garbage on establishment, growth and vigour of seedlings of Tectona grandis, Ailanthus triphysa, Albizia falcataria and Terminalia paniculata. The study area lies in tropical zone with a relatively high precipitation and humidity. The seedlings, when planted in potting media T_1 (soil: sand: cowdung) and T_7, recorded 100 per cent success with regard to both initial establishment after one week of planting and final survival after eight months. Generally, mortality was more when fresh garbage alone was used as a planting medium. With regard to growth and vigour in terms ofshoot and root growth parameters, and other physiological attributes, potting mixtures of soil and cowdung with two weeks decomposed garbage were found to be most promising. This was true for all the species. Growth and vigour was generally found to beless when seedlings were grown in fresh garbage. The relative growth rate and other physiological attributes were also found to be less for this treatment. Uptake of nitrogen was found to be highly influenced by potting media while the influence of P andK is not very prominent.