Seed Yield of Groundnut (Arachis Hypogaea L.) as Influenced by Phosphorus and Manure Application at Babile, Eastern Ethiopia

Objective: A field experiment was conducted in order to study the effect of phosphorus and manure application on agronomic performance and seed yield of groundnut. Methods: Factorial combination of two groundnut varieties (‘Werer 962’ and ‘Oldhale’), Three rates of phosphorus (0, 90 and 180 kg P2O5 ha-1) and three rates of manure (0, 5 and 10 ton ha-1) were laid out in randomized complete block design with three replication. Results: The combined application of 180 kg P2O5 ha-1 and 10 ton manure ha-1 resulted in the highest number of pods per plant and seed yield. The increase in number of pods per plant and seed yield at the highest combined application rates of the two fertilizers were 40 and 60%, compared to the control of the two fertilizers. Generally, the present study has shown that the integrated use of manure (10 ton ha-1) and inorganic phosphorus (180 kg P2O5 ha-1) fertilizer resulted in highest seed yield of groundnut compared to the application of either fertilizer alone.