Effect of Plant Leaf Positions on Some Micronutrients, Anti-nutrients and Toxic Substances in Telfairia occidentalis at the Vegetative Phase

Abstract

Pot experiment was conducted to determine the effect of leaf positions on the concentrations of some phytotoxins (cyanide, nitrate, soluble and total oxalates), micronutrients namely; vitamin C, β-carotene (provitamin A) and mineral elements (Fe, Mg, Cu, Zn, Ca Na and K) at vegetative phase of Telfairia occidentalis grown in nitrogen and non -nitrogen treated soil. The leaves of Telfairia occidentalis were harvested and analysed at three different leaf locations, namely; basal, middle and upper positions. The result obtained showed that no significant differences was observed in the cyanide concentration between basal and middle leaves and between middle and upper leaves, however, basal leaves had significant (p< 0.05) higher concentration of cyanide than upper leaves irrespective of soil nitrogen levels. The concentrations of nitrate and β-carotene in control and nitrogen fertilized Telfairia occidentalis were significantly (p<0.05) highest in upper, followed by middle and lowest in the basal leaf position. The soluble and total oxalates content in Telfairia occidentalis were significantly (p<0.05) higher in the basal and middle leaves than the upper leaves irrespective of soil nitrogen levels. While the vitamin C concentration in the vegetable was significantly elevated in basal leaves than the leaves obtain from middle and upper leaf locations. Analysis of mineral elements showed that Fe, Mg, Zn and Ca were concentrated more in the basal and middle leaves than the upper leaves while the K concentration was significantly (p<0.05) higher in the middle and upper leaves than the basal leaves in control and nitrogen treated Telfairia occidentalis. The results conclude that concentrations of most

Estimation of nutritive composition of Sauropus androgynus (Multivitamin plant) at different growth stages and position of leaves

“…High Vitamin C (220.41 mg/100g) content was noted in basal whorl leaves on 120 days and lesser value (92.26 mg/100g) in terminal leaves on 60 days. Similar trend was observed in Telifairia occidentalis by [18] Platel and Srinivasan (2017) and [5] Musa et al (2012). The previous study in Chekkurmanis by [22] Padmavathi and Rao (1990) and [31] Singh et al (2011) reported that vitamin C content was 244.00 mg/100g and 314.30 mg/100g respectively in terminal and basal whorls, which was higher than this study result.…”

A Survey of Plant Iron Content—A Semi-Systematic Review

“…Ogbadoyi (2012) have investigated the leaf position influence on the iron level in this vegetative organ in Telfairia occidentalis Hook. f. (Cucurbitaceae), using both a control soil and a nitrogen-fertilized one [ 52 ]. Their results suggest that nitrogen supply slightly increases iron absorption, but the authors conducted no statistical inference test (applying t-tests on data published we have found that the differences were not significant, however consistent across the three leaf positions, which indicates that increasing the sample size might result in statistical significance, currently this being a hypothesis only, yet to be confirmed).…”

A Comparative Study on Micronutrients and Antinutrients of Leaf Extracts of Pterocarpus soyauxii and Pterocarpus santalinoides

“…They may be aromatic, bitter or tasteless [4], generally succulent and consumed as a side dish with starchy staples [5]. The green leaves of vegetables are rich in retinol (vitamin A), vitamin B complex, folic acid, vitamin C, and mineral elements such as calcium, iron, zinc, potassium, copper, magnesium, and phosphorus [6][7][8][9][10]. In the world today, there are several reports on the nutritional benefits of vegetable species; one of these includes Pterocarpus soyauxii and Pterocarpus santalinoides [9][10][11].…”