Effect of goat manure levels on growth performance of wild watermelon (Citrullus lanatus var. Citroides) cultivated under shade house conditions

Abstract

Abstract The objective of the study was to determine the effect of different goat manure levels on the growth yield and performance of wild watermelon ( Citrullus lanatus subsp.) cultivated in shade houses. Six treatments comprised different goat manure levels, namely, river sand, Hutton soil, and goat manure T 0 -1:3:0 (control), T 1 -1:3:1, T 2 -1:3:2, T 3 -1:3:3, T 4 -1:3:4, and T 5 -1:3:5. Treatments had a highly significant (P ≤ 0.01) effect on dry shoot mass (DSM) (g), fruit weight (FW) (g), and fruit diameter (FD) (mm) of wild watermelon plants. The dry root mass (DRM) (g), vine length (VL) (m), and chlorophyll content (CCL) of wild watermelon plants were not significantly affected by the application of goat manure levels. The goat manure levels in T 1 -1:31, T 2 -1:3:2, T 3 -1:3:3, T 4 -1:3:4, and T 5 -1:3:5 reached the cumulative DSM (6.57, 10.12, 9.17, 11.14, and 8.32). In contrast, all the goat manure levels T1-1:31, T2-1:3:2, T3-1:3:3, T4-1:3:4, and T5-1:3:5 reduced FW (183.56, 72.02, 119.05, 171.87, 9.08 g) compared to the control (1:3:0), achieved 212.14 g, while the highest (183.56, 171.87, and 119.05) were at T1-1:31, T4-1:3:4, and T3-1:3:3, respectively. The smallest FM (72.02 and 9.08 cm) was observed at 1:3:2 and 1:3:5 goat manure levels, respectively. Similarly, all the goat manure levels T1-1:31, T2-1:3:2, T3-1:3:3, T4-1:3:4, and T5-1:3:5 reduced FD (61.03, 40.24, 59.76, 69.66, and 14.40 mm) compared to the control (1:3:0), which was achieved at 78.73 mm. In conclusion, T4-1:3:4 performed well in terms of the DSM. Therefore, goat manure at T4-1:3:4 achieved the best growth performance in wild watermelon.