Comparative Effects of Banana Peel and Eggshell Liquid Bio-fertilizers on the Growth and Yield of Onion (Allium cepa L .) and Fluted Pumpkin (Telfairiaoccidentalis )
Abstract
The increasing demand for sustainable and environmentally friendly agricultural practices has stimulated interest in the use of organic bio-fertilizers as alternatives to synthetic fertilizers. This study evaluated the effects of banana peel and eggshell liquid bio-fertilizers on the growth and yield of onion (Allium cepa L.) and fluted pumpkin (Telfairiaoccidentalis). The experiment was conducted at Gombe State University Botanical Garden using a Completely Randomized Design (CRD) with three replicates. Banana peel and eggshell liquid bio-fertilizers were applied at 25, 50, 75, and 100 mL, alongside an NPK fertilizer treatment and an untreated control. Growth parameters, chlorophyll content, biomass, yield, and nutrient composition were evaluated, and the data were analyzed using analysis of variance (ANOVA). Most measured growth and yield parameters showed no statistically significant differences among treatments (P > 0.05), although some bio-fertilizer treatments produced numerically comparable responses to the NPK fertilizer under the conditions of this study. The findings indicate that banana peel and eggshell liquid bio-fertilizers may serve as promising organic nutrient sources for vegetable production. However, given the largely non-significant treatment effects and the controlled sack-culture conditions of the experiment, further field-based studies with larger sample sizes and diverse environmental conditions are required before recommending their widespread agricultural use.