INVESTIGATING THE IMPACT OF BURNT, UNBURNT, AND MIXED COCONUT (COCOS NUCIFERA L.) HUSK ON GROWTH AND YIELD OF MAIZE (ZEA MAYS)

Coconut husk, a readily available agricultural waste, has been explored as a potential organic
amendment to improve soil fertility and crop productivity. This study examines the effects of
burnt, unburnt, and a combination of burnt and unburnt coconut husk on the growth and yield
of maize (Zea mays L.). The unburnt and burnt coconut husks used for the experiment were
sourced from Yaba College of Technology, Odoiragushi, Epe, Lagos State and its environment.
The test crop, maize (Oba super 2) seeds were sourced from the National Institutes of
Horticulture Research (NIHORT). Treatments applied were burnt coconut husk (BCH) at 5 tha
1, burnt coconut husk (BCH) at 10 tha-1, unburnt coconut husk (UBCH) at 5 tha-1, unburnt
coconut husk (UBCH) at 10 tha-1, mixture of burnt and unburnt coconut husk (BCH + UBCH)
at 5 tha-1, mixture of burnt and unburnt coconut husk (BCH + UBCH) at 10 tha-1, and control
(no treatment). The burnt and unburnt coconut husk reduced the acidity of the soil from 6.9 to
6.05 and increased the organic matter content from 2.8% to 4.3%. The burnt and unburnt coconut
husks at different inclusions released nutrients for the growth and development of maize. Five
(5) tha-1 inclusion of burnt coconut husk expressed higher reproductive development by
producing eight (8) cobs and cobs weight of 2.20 kg which were higher than other treatments,
The study concludes that coconut husk, in its various forms, has potentials as a sustainable
organic treatment for maize production with burnt coconut husk at 5 tha-1 being recommended
for farmers for optimum growth and yield of maize.