Influence of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi (Glomus clarum) and Compost on Early Growth Response of Parkia biglobosa under a Greenhouse Condition

Background and Objective: Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi (AMF) plays a role in the structural stability of soil which governs most soil activities. Stable organic manure such as compost may provide a suitable habitat and energy source for mycorrhizal growth, which is also a benefits in view of soil productivity. The impact of a combination of compost and mycorrhizal on plant growth was assessed in this study. Hence, experiment was conducted to investigate the influence of compost and mycorrhizalon the early growth response of Parkia biglobosa under a greenhouse condition. Materials and Methods: In the greenhouse of the Department of Bioscience, Forestry Research Institute of Nigeria. A 2 × 5 factorial experiment in a complete randomized design was conducted; two levels of mycorrhizal (with and without); five levels of compost (10t/ha, 20t/ha, 30t/ha, 40t/ha and no amendments) in two (2) kilogram soil under four (4) replications was set up. Laboratory analyses of soil and organic amendment incorporated in the soil were done. Data on growth variables were taken fortnightly. The data was statistically analyzed and mean were separated using Duncan Multiple Range Test (DMRT). Results: The results showed that, there was significant difference (p<0.05) in the plant height of Parkia biglobosa between mycorrhizal and non-mycorrhizal plants across all weeks after transplanting (WAT),compost application with the interaction of AMF at 40 t/harecorded the highest plant height and number of leaves at 16WAT with 35.14 cm  and 29.75 respectively, which are relatively comparable to other treatments used, the least plant height  and number of leaves were observed when -AMF 0 t/ha ( control) was used as an amendment with 23.00 cm and AMF 0t/ha (15.05) respectively. For collar diameter, all the treatments were comparable to one another except + AMF 30t/ha which produced the lowest collar diameter with mean value of 2.97mm. Conclusion: Based on the description of results above, it can be concluded that: The Inoculation of the AMF and compost significantly affect the early growth performance of Parkia biglobosa, thus providing optimum soil physical conditions for it growth.