This experiment was carried out at student's experimental field, Kabba College of Agriculture, Horticultural Section to investigate the response of tomato variety (Roma F) yield to different mulch materials and staking. A split plot experiment was laid out in a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replications to randomize the staking levels and mulch materials in the main and sub-plots, respectively. The experiment comprised of two staking levels, i.e. stick staking (SST) and no-stick staking (NST) and six mulch materials, i.e. black polyethylene, white polyethylene, maize straw, palm fronts, grasses and no mulch. The parameters taken on soil physical and chemical properties are soil moisture content (%), soil temperature ( O C), soil pH, total nitrogen, available phosphorus and soil organic matter.Growth and yield parameters taken are as follows: average plant height, number of leaves, and number of fruits, stem girth, number of fruit per plant, fruit length, fruit diameter and yield per land area. Weeds were identified and their dry weights were measured. Data were collected from ten randomly selected plants in each plot. The data were statistically analyzed using GENSTAT. The analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed to find out the significance of variation among the treatments while the significant difference between mean treatments were separated using Duncan's multiple range test (DMRT) at 5% level of probability. The result obtained from this study indicated that mulch materials and stick ISSN 2166-0379 2015 www.macrothink.org/jas 62 staking affect significantly growth parameters of tomato, yield per plant and yield per land area. The result also, indicated that plot mulch with black polythene performance best in terms of growth and yield and also improved soil physical properties better than either white polythene or organic mulch in the study area. It is therefore recommended that black polyethylene should be used as mulch materials for tomato production. However, better and stable fruit yield of tomato could be obtained with the practice of mulching in combination with staking. It is recommended that mulching should be carried out together with staking for higher fruit yield and black polyethylene should be use as mulch material in the study area. Journal of Agricultural Studies

Most residents use dump soil as manure to plant vegetables and Aloe Vera in their garden without knowledge of the level of heavy metal contaminated in the soil. It was this concern that prompted the determination of heavy metals in the edible part of Celosia argentea, Lycopersicum esculentum and Aloe Vera younger clone plants planted on the dump soil and the control on Yaba College of Technology Botanical garden. The plants were allowed to grow for eight weeks before harvested. The harvested samples were digested with acid and heavy metal concentrations were determined using Atomic Adsorption Spectrophotometry. The concentration of heavy metal in Celosia argentea from dump soil and the control in mg/g are Cu (13.21, 0.62), Zn (29.30, 0.76), Fe (48.51, 7.82), Cd (2.27, ND), Pb (3.64, ND) Ni (1.48, ND) respectively. The concentration in the edible part of Lycopersicum esculentum are: Cu (36.53, 2.16), Zn (46.84, 12.70), Fe (64.34, 18.23), Cd (3.70, ND), Pb (5.35, ND), Ni (2.57, ND) respectively. The concentration in the Aloe Vera tissue are: Cu (19.82, 1.86), Zn (28.19, 1.15), Fe (32.74, 2.43), Cd (1.22, ND), Pb (2.62, ND), Ni (1.17, ND) respectively. The heavy metal concentrations uptake in the plants is higher than the permissible levels set by FAO/WHO. These results show that the level of heavy metal contamination in dump soil is very high and not suitable as manure because of health hazard associated with the level of heavy metal contamination.