CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

Soil provides the vital nutrients, water and air that requires

for healthy plant growth and development (Barton,R., 2013) that

makes it a very important factor in planting crops. Soil can be of

different types and all of it can be used to some extent for

vegetable production (Singh, 2015).

The type of soil that will be used will depend on the crop

that a gardener will plant (Singh, 2015). But there are cases that

a particular type of soil is widely distributed just like in

Alaminos, Pangasinan, Carangalan, Nueva Ecija, Antipolo, Rizal,

Bolinao, Pangasinan, Banna, Ilocos Norte, Baguio City, Cavinti,

Laguna, La Trinidad, Benguet, and Carolina, Naga City, where all of

soil in these places have a high amount of clay as well as acidic

in pH which are constraints for crop growth (Calubaquib, M., et

al., 2016). The poor physical condition of soil restricts the soil

itself to take in sufficient amount of water and it also affects

the plant root development as well as the aeration. For the soils

in these places to be used in planting crop, soil amendment is

needed particularly through the application of soil conditioner

(Traunfeld, 2013).
 Soil conditioner is a material added to soil to improve its

overall condition of the soil, especially for good plant growth and

health. Simultaneously it corrects the soil deficiencies in

structure and/or nutrients (Mukherjee, 2013) as well as it improves

soil structure, drainage, aeration, increase the cation exchange

capacity, buffering capacity and water holding capacity (Goswami,

Singh, 2015). An example of soil conditioner is lime that is

commonly used to correct the soil pH (Carroll, J., 2016). Using

lime for acidic soil raises pH so that the plant roots can absorb

the necessary nutrients from the soil (Carroll, J., 2016). But lime

involves calcination which is the extraction of the necessary

material (calcium carbonate) with the use of high temperature that

has a negative impact in the environment since calcination process

is responsible for a considerable percentage of carbon dioxide

emission (Majeed, Z.H., Taha, M.R., Jawad, I.J., Khan, T.A., 2014).

In line with this, the researchers intends to utilize chicken

eggshells that will serve as an alternative soil conditioner since

the abundance of calcium in eggshell is almost used like lime

(Pleasant, B.,2013). According to Yasothai, R. and Kavithaa, N. V.

(2014) eggshell is rich in calcium which has 90% and a little

amount of phosphorus that contains less than 5%. Calcium can be

used to moderate soil acidity which is important when growing leafy

vegetables like lettuce (Masley,S., 2017).

 Lactuca sativa (Lettuce) is an economically important member

of family Compositae. This is also called as garden lettuce which

is leafy annual or biennial herb (Abaygar, C., 2015). It grows best

in silty clay loam, loam and clay loam soil with pH of 6 to 6.8

(Jose, D.C., 2016). Loose leaf lettuces are the easiest to grow

compared to other varieties of Lactuca sativa (Vanderlinden, C.,

2017). Moreover, it can be grown under a wide range of soils

provided that it is well supplied with organic matter and it should

be well drained, moist and not soggy (Ryan, K., 2015) In this

research it will be planted in clay soil which is normally heavy or

sticky, non-porous and acidic then application of soil conditioner

is a must to make the soil friable (Jose, D.C., 2016) which will be

conducted in this research with the use of pulverize chicken

eggshell. As a result, it is expected that pulverized chicken

eggshell can be an alternative soil conditioner that improves the

soil that will be favourable to the growth of Lactuca sativa

(Lettuce).

Statement of the Problem

This research aims to study the effectivity of pulverized

chicken eggshell as alternative soil conditioner to grow Lactuca

sativa (Lettuce) planted in clay soil.

Specifically, it sought to answer the following:

1. What is the effect of pulverized chicken eggshell in clay soil

in terms of:
 a. pH

b. soil porosity

c. nutrient content (NPK)

2. Is there a significant difference on the effect of pulverized

chicken eggshell in clay soil in terms of pH, soil porosity

and nutrient content (NPK)?

3. What is the effect of pulverized chicken eggshell as soil

conditioner to the growth of Lactuca sativa (lettuce) in terms

of:

a. Plant height

b. Number of leaves

c. Wet weight

d. Dry weight

4. Is there a significant difference on the effect of pulverized

chicken eggshell to the growth of Lactuca sativa (Lettuce) in

terms of plant height, number of leaves, wet weight, and dry

weight in different formulation such as:

a. 1.12 grams of pulverized chicken eggshell in 250 grams of

clay soil

b. 1.57grams of pulverized chicken eggshell in 250 grams of

clay soil

c. 2.02 grams of pulverized chicken eggshell in 250 grams of

clay soil

5. Which among formulation is best to the growth of Lactuca

sativa (Lettuce)
 a. Formulation 1 (1.12 grams of pulverized chicken eggshell in

250 grams of clay soil)

b. Formulation 2 (1.57 grams of pulverized chicken eggshell in

250 grams of clay soil)

c. Formulation 3 (2.02 grams of pulverized chicken eggshell in

250 grams of clay soil)

Hypothesis

There is no significant difference on the effect of pulverized

chicken eggshell in clay soil in terms of pH, porosity and nutrient

content (NPK).

There is no significant difference to the growth of Lactuca

sativa (Lettuce) in terms of plant height, number of leaves, wet

weight, and dry weight in 1.12 grams of pulverized chicken eggshell

in 250 grams of clay soil; 1.57 grams of pulverized chicken

eggshell in 250 grams of clay soil; and 2.02 grams of pulverized

chicken eggshell in 250 grams of clay soil.

Significance of the Study

This study aims to utilize eggshells as alternative soil

conditioner in clay soil and according to Janis (2015) clay soil

needs an amendment to allow better drainage and has an acidic pH

which is not favorable for crop production. By using pulverized

chicken eggshell as an alternative soil conditioner, the farmers in

the different regions specially in the Region I, Region III and

Cordillera Administrative Region in the island of Luzon can use

this pulverized chicken eggshell as an alternative soil conditioner

to improve the soil properties and structure of their clay soil and

be favorable site for planting Lactuca sativa (Lettuce)(Calubaquib,

M., Navarrete, I., Sanchez, P., 2016). Furthermore, in the study of

McGeehan (2012), the use of waste materials as soil amendments has

received increased attention in for agronomic applications. Adding

these materials to soils can serve a dual purpose: (1) for disposal

of solid waste from municipalities and agricultural operations;(2)

to improve chemical and physical properties which turn to promote

improved crop performance. The application of composted municipal

solid waste and composted crop residues were shown to increase soil

fertility and improve stability in agricultural soils. On the other

hand, Mukherjee (2013) also stated that with the help of soil

conditioner, it will improve the physical condition of soil such as

porosity, and permeability by using the materials for agriculture

purposes. The soil conditioner plays an important role to increase

strength of the soil.

This will also help the environment according to King’ori,

(2011) cited in Phil and Zhihong (2009) stated, eggshells are waste

materials from hatcheries, homes and fast food industries that can

contribute to environmental pollution. Moreover, there are

challenges associated with disposal of eggshells include cost,

availability of disposal sites, odor, flies and abrasiveness. So,

utilizing eggshell for agricultural use like as soil conditioner

can help to prevent diseases.

This study will also help the future researchers since the

information presented in this research can be used as a reference

data in conducting new researches or testing the validity of other

related findings. It will serve as their cross reference that will

give them a background or an overview about the pulverized chicken

eggshell as an alternative soil conditioner of Lactuca sativa

(Lettuce). Furthermore, conducting this research will contribute in

agricultural methods at the same time will help the researchers to

understand the field of agriculture as well as to improve their

logical thinking skills.

Scope and Limitation of the Study

This study will focus on the utilization of pulverized chicken

eggshell as an alternative soil conditioner of Lactuca sativa

(Lettuce). It will test the growth of Lactuca sativa (Lettuce) in

terms of height, dry weight, wet weight and number of leaves. Soil

analysis such as pH testing, porosity and nutrient content (NPK) of

the clay soil will also be included. The researcher will not

include the effect of pulverized chicken eggshell as an alternative

soil conditioner of Lactuca sativa (Lettuce) in terms of testing

the cation exchange capacity of the clay soil as well as the

nutrient components of Lactuca sativa (Lettuce).

 The study will be conducted at the HRD building of Philippine

Normal University - Manila. The materials that will be used to

conduct the experiment are the clay soil, seeds of Lactuca sativa

(Looseleaf lettuce), plant pots, lime as the positive control,

water and pulverized chicken eggshell. The duration of the

experiment of this study will last 6 weeks.

Definition of Terms

Acidic – a substance that has a pH of below 7.

Amendment – material that is used to enhance soil’s

characteristics.

Basic – a substance that has a pH of above 7.

Calcination – a process that involves heating of solid material to

a high temperature for the purpose of removing volatile substances,

oxidizing a portion of mass, or to make the material be easily

crumbled.

Calcium Carbonate (Agricultural lime) – commercially used soil

conditioner and has an effect that elevate soil’s pH.

Dry weight – weight of loose leaf lettuce after the drying process.

Eggshell – outer covering of the egg of chicken.

Growth – refers to the increasing change in height, weight and

number of leaves of a plant. These are the variables to be used in

the study to show growth.

Neutral pH – a substance that has a pH of 7.

Nutrient - a substance that provides nourishment essential for

growth and the maintenance of plant.

pH – the measure of the molar concentration of hydrogen ions to

determine the acidity or basicity of the solution.

Plant height - the distance from the base of the plant at ground

level to the top of the highest leaf or the panicle of a mature

plant, measured in centimeters.

Soil amendment – a process that involves application of materialsto

enhance soil’s characteristics.

Soil conditioner - an amendment that is used to enhance soil’s pH,

porosity, texture, improves better root system and aeration.

Soil porosity – the measure of the amount of water that is allowed

to move through the soil.

Tillage – a way of aerating the soil to reduce compactness.

Wet weight – weight of the plant that is not dried.