UNIVERSITY OF PORT HARCOURT

A TECHNICAL REPORT ON
STUDENTS INDUSTRIAL WORK EXPERIENCE
UNDER TAKEN AT EDDUKO PARKS AND
GARDENS
AT NO 188 NTA GATE FACE
MGBUOBA PORTHARCOURT, RIVERS STATE
BY
MBAKWE EMEKA EJIKE.
MATRIC NO: U2018/5545/207
PRESENTED TO THE DEPARTMENTOF PLANT
SCIENCE AND BIOTECHNOLOGY
FACULTY OF SCIENCE
IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE AWARD OF BACHELOR
OF SCIENCE (B.SC) DEGREE IN SCIENCE
AND BIOTECHNOLOGY
COURSECODE: PSB309.2
COURSE TITLE: INDUSTRIAL FIELD EXPERIENCE
COURSECOORDINATOR: Dr E.B OCHEKWU
DR .C.WAHUAOJ
DR.k. OKONWU

MARCH
  Introduction
 Activities indulged in
 Nursery of the plant
 Diseases
 Disease control
 Economic importance

INTRODUCTION

Some plant’s seedlings cannot withstand

harsh weather conditions, therefore nursery
practices are needed.
A nursery is a conducive place where tender
crops are temporarily raised, under intensive
management, before they are transplanted to
their permanent site. It is a place where young
progeny of plants are produced. Nurseries are
raised to get plants of the right size at the
right time. One economic plant whose name
thuja due to its environmental beautifying
ability and other ornamental and medicinal use
is propagated through nursery.

ACTIVITIES INDULGED IN

The activities conducted during the siwes programme are as

follows:

-Perforation of bags: Nursery bags are perforated(putting

holes in the bag) to enable water leak out and better
aeration. This perforated is filled with the soil in with the
seedlings or vegetative plant parts are grown.

-Planting of seeds: Seeds are collected and kept in

suitableconditions for germination (good soil, oxygen,
suitable temperature,water and light) after germination the
seedlings are transferred to the nursery bags and the
dormant seeds are left for future germination.

-Vegetative propagation of plant parts: Plant parts like

stems and shoot buds were used in the propagation in the
nursery to grow into new plants

-Transplanting: Plants were transplanted from the nursery

to bigger polybags to prepare them for sales and those whose
roots had outgrown the polybags were transplanted into the
soil. Transplanting is done during the early hours of the day
or late hours of the day, after transplanting, in the absence
of rainfall, the plants are watered.

-Weeding: This is done done manually once a week in the

garden, also handpicking of the weeds from the polybags
which the plants are planted is also done.

-Watering of plants: Watering of plants were done when non

rainfall was observed for 5-6 days in a week and light
watering is done during the planting of the seeds or
propagation of plant parts also during transplanting.
-Organic Manuring: The manure used in the garden is
Chicken droppings. Manuring is done after weeding, once in
two weeks, during manuring the leaves are avoided in

Plate 1.1 organice manure

NURSERY PRACTICES OF
THUJA

Thuja, stemming from the

classical Latin word “thya” or
“thyia” meaning arborvitae or
tree of life, was the genus name
given to represent a group of
evergreen trees in the
Cupressaceae (cypress) family.
Arborvitae or Thuja trees are low maintenance, versatile,
evergreen trees that range from small to large in size.
how do you identify Thuja?
Thuja – Branches are flattened in one plane. Juvenile leaves
are awl-like and with a lighter shade of green, while mature
leaves are scale-like having a darker shade of green; leaves
are always opposite. Scale-like leaves sometimes have a raised
gland on the back.

Plate 1.2 young thuja

Plate1.3 mature thuja

Methods of propagation
There are basically two methods for the propagation of
thuja plant
 Transplanting of the offshoot (Division)
 Germinating of seeds
Germinating of seeds
Propagating thuja plants through seeds might take a long
time to see a matured thuja from the seedlings, but it is also a
better way of propagating thuja plants. The seeds of the thuja
seed takes about 14 to 40 days to germinate.
 Collect the better quality seeds to start the process. The
thuja seeds are mostly green but are dark brown when
fully grown and ready to be planted. Green ones are
young seeds that take more time to germinate.
Plate 1.4 fresh green thuja seeds

Plate 1.5 Thuja seeds when are dried and are opened by
them selves.

 It Is better to use a seed-starting soil mix to place the

seeds.
 Put the seeds an inch deep into the soil mix.
 Let the soil be moist during the germination process.
  Place the pot/nursery bag in a place that gets bright
indirect sunlight.After 14 days of proper care, you will
find a small thuja seed coming out of the soil.
Transplanting of the offshoots(division)
Step-by-step guide to propagating an thuja plant by
divisions:
 Make sure that the thuja plant you choose for
propagating is mature and ready for propagation. It
should have multiple strong stems that can be divided
easily by identifying the roots that feed them.
Plate1. 6 Mature thuja ready to be propagated
  Before dividing the stems from the main plant,
remember to water it well the day before so that the soil
gets loosened up a bit which ultimately allows you to
separate

Plate 1.7 Watering of the thuja to loosen up the

soil
the roots more easily.
 When removing thuja plant from its pot/bag, pat the
sides of the pot to loosen the root ball thereby allowing
the plant to come out of its container with minimal effort
on your part.
 Once your thuja plant is out of the container, gently
shake the soil off its roots and try to identify the roots
attached to different stems.
 Try to pick groups of at least 4-5 stems to divide from
the parent plant. One or two stems alone will not
produce sufficiently bushy growth.
 Once you have identified the stems to be divided, use a
sharp knife to cut them away from the parent plant.
Make sure to preserve all the major roots feeding the
stems and try your best to keep smaller roots intact if
possible.
 Place the newly divided offspring into a pot containing a
mixture of standard potting mix. Water your newly
 divided plants thoroughly, ensuring that The rootball is
nicely moist. Make sure to let any excess water.

plate 1. 8 Off spring of thuja in a nursery bag after being

transplanted

Materials used in the propagation /nursery

practices of the thuja plant
 Garden
 Garden hoe
 Water
  Nursery bags
 Watering can
 Garden gloves
 Hand trowel
 Soil
Importance of propagation during nursery
practices.
The following are the importance of Plant nursery to the
environment:
• It reduces the threat of losing rare plants.
Crop uniformity is improved
• It contributes to afforestation or horticulture.
•There is availability of select plants in superior quality.
•It is made easy for purchase.
• It helps one to buy desired plants at the right time.
Common diseases of thuja plant
The most common diseases of thuja plant is the THUJA
BLIGHT.
What is Thuja blight? Thuja blight is a fungal disease caused
by Didymascella thujina that attacks the leaves and shoots of
Thuja species. Young trees of the thuja plant can be badly
damaged, and the disease can also be unsightly on larger
specimens. Lower branches tend to be worst affected,
particularly in dense plantings with poor air circulation.

Plate 1.9 Blight disease on a thuja plant

Control of thuja plant diseases

1. Avoid planting Thuja plicata (particularly seedlings and
young plants) in areas where air circulation is poor.
2. Remove and dispose of any twigs that are shed as a
result of infection by Thuja blight.
3. Cut out heavily-infected shoots, if this can be done
without spoiling the overall shape of the tree
4. If chemical controls are used, they should be used only in
a minimal and highly targeted manner.
Economic importance of thuja
 They serve as ornamental trees
 In manufacturing, thuja is used as a fragrance in
cosmetics and soaps.
 The serve as medicine for most diseases like the liver
diseases