Efficacy of Nutrient Solutions Growing Fodder in a Greenhouse Hydroponic System in The Gambia

Background and Objective: In The Gambia, feeding of ruminant animals was becoming a challenge. The study addressed the feeding gap and demand for ruminant animals because of the shortage and nutritious fodder and the need to find an alternative method to feed these animals. Materials and Methods: The 3 nutrient solutions in growing maize fodder in The Gambia were carried out between July and August, of 2022. Cow manure (CM), poultry manure (PM) and tap water (TW) in a Complete Randomized Design (CRD) with four replicates where maize was used to produce fodder in a low-cost greenhouse hydroponic. The 3 cycles of the experiment were carried out. GenStat was used to analyze the data in One-way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA). Results: On day 12, the height of maize fodder was 11.12 cm in PM and 7.55 cm in CM, significantly higher than 6.10 cm in TW. The weight of maize fodder from PM was 4.99, 4.25 and 4.12 kg/tray, significantly higher than TW. Water and nutrient use efficiency from PM and CM were significantly lower than TW. Conclusion: This work suggested that ruminant animals can be fed more conveniently by cultivating maize fodder hydroponically.