Ikawa, Moses2026-09-092026-09-092026Ikawa, M. (2026). Effects of moringa and onion bio extracts on seed germination, growth and yield performance of green pepper. [Unpublished undergraduate research report]. Busitema University.https://bdears.busitema.ac.ug/handle/123456789/9425Undergraduate research reportGreen pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) is an important vegetable crop in Uganda, contributing to household nutrition and farm income. However, poor and uneven seed germination and slow seedling establishment can reduce crop productivity, particularly among smallholder farmers with limited access to affordable seed-priming technologies. This study evaluated the effects of moringa (Moringa oleifera) leaf extract and onion (Allium cepa) bulb extract as seed-priming agents on germination, growth and yield performance of green pepper, using 0.5% potassium nitrate (KNO₃) as a conventional chemical priming benchmark and unprimed seeds as the control. The experiment was conducted at Busitema University, Arapai Campus, using seven treatments replicated three times. The treatments were unprimed control, 0.5% KNO₃, 10% moringa extract, 5%, 10% and 15% onion extracts, and a combination of 10% onion and 10% moringa extracts. Germination, seedling vigour, vegetative growth, flowering and yield parameters were assessed. Seed priming significantly (P < 0.001) improved the measured germination, growth and yield parameters compared with the unprimed control. The 0.5% KNO₃ treatment performed best overall, recording 93.00% germination, 6.98 days mean germination time, 14.83 cm seedling length, 21.41 cm plant height, 30.68 leaves plant⁻¹, 44.67 days to 50% flowering, 27.47 fruits plant⁻¹ and an estimated yield of 526.67 kg ha⁻¹. The 10% moringa extract ranked second overall, recording 86.00% germination, 8.30 days mean germination time, 13.20 cm seedling length, 20.46 cm plant height, 29.22 leaves plant⁻¹, 24.40 fruits plant⁻¹ and 396.00 kg ha⁻¹ yield. Compared with KNO₃, moringa achieved 92.5% of its germination performance, 95.6% of its plant height and 75.2% of its estimated yield, while increasing yield by 196% relative to the unprimed control. Among the onion treatments, 15% onion extract produced the widest fruits (9.66 cm) and the highest onion-treatment yield (324.50 kg ha⁻¹). The onion–moringa combination produced intermediate performance and did not show a synergistic advantage over moringa alone. The study demonstrated that although 0.5% KNO₃ was the most effective treatment, 10% moringa leaf extract was the most promising bio-extract and substantially improved green pepper performance compared with the unprimed control. Moringa therefore has potential as a locally available and potentially affordable seed-priming option for smallholder farmers. Further studies should compare moringa extract directly with commercial seed-priming products and evaluate different concentrations, priming durations, cultivars, seasons and locations.enOther