EFFECT OF MINERAL AND BIOFERTILIZERS ON GROWTH, YIELD COMPONENTS, CHEMICAL CONSTITUENTS AND ANATOMICAL STRUCTURE OF MOGHAT PLANT (Glossostemon bruguieri Desf.) GROWN UNDER RECLAIMED SOIL CONDITIONS

Field experiments were conducted at Ehnasia Town, Beni-Suief Governorate during the two successive seasons of 2004 and 2005 in order to study the effect of different levels of mineral fertilizers from nitrogen and phosphorous (25, 50 and 100% of the recommended dose) alone or combined with a mixture of biofertilizers containing nitrogen fixers(Azotobacter sp. and Azospirillum sp.) and phosphate dissolving bacteria (Bacillus sp.) on growth, yield, chemical constituents and anatomical structure of moghat plant (Glossostemon bruguieri Desf.). For all treatments, basic dose of potassium fertilizer     (150 kg K₂O/fed.) was added as potassium sulphate (48% K₂O).
The obtained results indicated that increasing level of the used mineral fertilizers induced significant increase in all morphological characters of vegetative growth as well as in all yield characters of tuberous roots under investigation in both studied seasons and the rate of promotion increased gradually as the rate of mineral fertilizers increased up to 100% of the recommended dose. It is realized that raising the level of mineral fertilizers from 25% to 100% of the recommended dose induced significant increase of 29.8 and 41.1% for plant height, 15.7 and 14.4% for fresh weight of leaves/plant, 18.8 and 17.9% for dry weight of leaves/plant, 31.1 and 38.9% for length of tuberous root, 33.0 and 33.2% for diameter of tuberous root, 26.7 and 27.4% for fresh weight of tuberous root/plant, 38.0 and 42.8% for yield of air dried peeled root/plant and 37.7 and 42.9% for yield of air dried peeled roots/feddan of moghat plant in the first and second season; respectively.
Data also revealed that moghat plants obtained from biofertilized seeds showed significant increase in all morphological and yield characters under investigation in both studied seasons when compared with moghat plants obtained from uninoculated seeds. The increments in morphological and yield characters of moghat plant due to biofertilization treatment were 12.1 and 13.0% for plant height, 7.8 and 7.2% for fresh weight of leaves/plant, 8.7 and 8.9% for dry weight of leaves/plant, 14.7 and 14.9% for length of tuberous root, 14.5 and 15.8% for    diameter of tuberous root, 13.2 and 12.3% for fresh weight of tuberous root/ plant, 17.23 and 15.81% for yield of air dried peeled root/plant and 17.18 and 15.80%        for yield of air dried peeled roots/fedddan in the first and second season; respectively.
Likewise, the interaction between the used levels of mineral fertilizers and biofertilizers revealed significant effect in both studied seasons for all investigated characters. It is realized that increasing level of the used fertilizers from NP or using   a mixture of biofertilizers containing nitrogen fixers and phosphate dissolving bacteria induced significant increase in any of the investigated characters of moghat plant      in both studied seasons. The rate of promotion induced by raising the level of mineral fertilizers was equal to that induced by biofertilizers treatment. In this respect, it is worthy to note that the treatment of 100% of the recommended dose of NP did not statistically differ from that of 50% of the recommended dose of NP plus biofertilizers in their effect. This means that inoculated seeds of moghat plant with a mixture of biofertilizers containing nitrogen fixers and phosphate dissolving bacteria substitute half of the recommended dose from the used mineral fertilizers of NP.
Worthy to mention that the effect of the used mineral and biofertilizers on certain chemical constituents and on anatomical structure of moghat plant was under consideration.