Odoh, N.C., Ako, A.B.1 and N’cho, O.C.

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A study was carried out in pots at the Teaching and Research Farm of the Faculty of Agriculture, University of Abuja to assess the effects of different mulching materials and soil amendments on the growth and yield of okra. The experiment factors were soil amendment with three levels (inorganic fertilizer application, mycorrhizal inoculants and no-amendment) and mulch with four levels (leguminous live mulch, plastic, wood shaving and no-mulch). Inorganic fertilizer source was NPK 15:15:15 while the mycorrhizal inoculant contained Glomus mosseae. The experimental setup was a completely randomized design with three replicates. Number of leaves at harvest, plant height (cm), shoot weight (g), root length (cm) were significantly (p ≤ 0.05) affected by the mulch types. Soil amendments significantly (P ≤ 0.05) influenced the pod weight (g) and number at harvest, number of leaves, plant height (cm), fresh and dry weights (g) of shoot and root. Mulch type and soil amendment interaction effects were highly significant on pod weight (g) at harvest, number of branches, root length (cm) and shoot dry weight (g). The best performance in terms of root length occurred under plastic mulch (53.78 cm) which was, however, not significantly different from the performance under legume mulch (53.03 cm). Key words: Mulches, Mycorrhizal inoculation, Okra, Inorganic fertilizer