Preliminary investigations on the allelopathic influence of leaf litter of certain multipurpose trees.
Jacob John, Nair A. M.
Author Affiliation: Department of Agronomy, College of Agriculture, Kerala Agricultural University, Vellayani 695 522, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India.
Indian Journal of Forestry 22 : 66-69
Abstract : Preliminary laboratory experiments were conducted to study the allelopathic influence of the leaf litter of 7 multipurpose tree species (Acacia auriculiformis, Casuarina equisetifolia, Albizia lebbeck, Leucaena leucocephala, Artocarpus heterophyllus, Mangifera indica and Tamarindus indicus) commonly grown in home gardens in Kerala (India) on 2 test crops (rice and cowpeas). Leaf litter of all the species significantly inhibited germination and growth of rice. Radicle growth of cowpeas was also suppressed by all the tree species, while cowpea germination was not inhibited by Artocarpus and Mangifera. The inhibitory effects of Tamarindus and Acacia were generally relatively greater than those of the other species. Response indices revealed that the inhibition of radicle and plumule growth was more pronounced than that of germination.