Mutagenic Effect of Carboxylic Acid on the Growth and Yield of Two Varieties of Pepper Grown in Mubi, Adamawa State

The effect of carboxylic acid on the growth and yield of two varieties of pepper grown in Mubi, Adamawa State was investigated in this study was investigated after treatment with carboxylic acid. Two different cultivars of pepper Capsicum annum (sweet and hot) were obtained from Mubi Main Market. Five different concentrations were prepared on weight basis, viz. 0.001%, 0.002%, 0.003%, 0.004% and 0.005 respectively. The control treatment used was distilled water. The seeds were subjected to varying concentrations of the five different carboxylic acid concentrations (0.001-0.005) for 6 hours. The treated seed were then washed in running tap water to remove excess chemicals from the seed. They were planted, Complete Randomized Design method was adopted with five replicates for each concentration was carried out; all cultural practices observed and data collected on stem height, stem girth, number of flowers, number of leaves, leave area etc. ANOVA was used to analyze the data. Results showed that increased in carboxylic acid concentration brought about increase in all agronomical characters in both sweet and hot pepper except in stem girth where there was no statistical difference. However, more generations need to raised and molecular analysis carried out to ascertain the effects at the molecular level of treatment.