Yield and morphological characteristics of Burdock (Arctium lappa L.) in response to mineral fertilizer application

Burdock (Arctium lappa L.) is a medicinal plant, highly rich in phytochemicals which contribute towards its antioxidant properties and treatment of chronic diseases. It is also consumed as a vegetable in some regions of the world because of its high nutritive value. Currently, the plant material is imported for its medicinal purposes by herbal practitioners and pharmaceutical industries in the different countries of the world, including South Africa. However, the cultivation of this plant is lacking in South Africa and Africa as a whole. In order to achieve consistent supply of quality products and eliminate batch-to-batch variability of plant materials, a factorial experiment was conducted on Takinogawa long cultivar with eight treatments (T1=N423P210K315, T2=N423P280k315, T3=N635P210K315, T4=N635P280K315, T5=N846P210K315, T6=N846P280K315, T7=N1058P210K315 andT8=N1058P280K315 Kg/ha) and five collection time of data laid out in a completely randomized design replicated five times under 40% shade net. Fertilizer treatments were split into two equal doses at seedling transplant and four weeks after transplant. Data on morphological characteristics and yield were collected and analyzed using SAS software. There was a significant (P<0.05) difference across fertilizer treatments on morphological characteristics as well as the interactions between treatments and time of data collection. Significant differences (P<0.05) were also recorded on the yield parameters. Two treatments (N635P210 K315 and N635P280K315Kg/ha) significantly outperformed the other treatments.However, more research needs to be done on the enhancement of secondary metabolites of interest for the sustainable supply of quality plant materials for herbal practitioners and pharmaceutical industries.