## 3 Results and Discussion  
### Effect of OMET Growth Technique on Growth and Yield Components in Oka  
The results for the growth parameters were recorded during the vegetative stage of the plant (from week 1 up to week 8), while yield components were recorded at week 15 (110 days after transplanting), as presented in Figures 1-3 and Table 1. There was a significant (\(p\leq 0.05\)) difference between the samples grown under the OMET and non-OMET growing techniques on the stem diameter and the plant height of the studied okra plant, as shown in Figure 1.  
The OMET-grown okra resulted in a gradual increase in the stem diameter from week three, which further showed a two-fold thickness when compared to non-OMET-grown samples in week 8 (Figure 2). The stem diameter is an important agronomic trait for increasing okra's yield potential [20; 21; 22]. According to [PERSON] and [PERSON], [22] thin stems were not desirable because they were prone to lodging and a lower pod yield. The variation in stem diameter among the treatments might be related to the fact that stems contributed to a higher plant height for the capture of sunlight for the photosynthesis process [23]. The OMET growing technique significantly (\(p\leq 0.05\)) improved the plant height compared to the non-OMET systems, as shown in Figure 3. There was a gradual increase in plant height which was two-fold taller than the non-OMET. [PERSON] et al. [24] validated how taller plants are crucial for accommodating a greater number of pods on the main stem, and this has a direct effect on the pod yield in okra. The ability of the OMET system to preserve water and nutrients, which resulted in the moderate availability of water and good nutrient solubility and absorption by the plants, was likely the cause of the growing technique's effectiveness in increasing stem diameter and plant height [25].  
The OMET growing technique significantly (\(p\leq 0.05\)) improved the yield components of okra, as shown in Figure 4 and Table 1. At harvest, the OMET growing technique significantly increased the yield attributes as follows: the number of branches by 50%, the number of pods per plant by 49%, fresh pod weight by 53%, and pod length by 68% (Table 1). The pod diameter was unaffected by the OMET growing condition. The increase  
Figure 3: Effect of OMET growing technique on the plant height of okra during vegetative stage (n = 12 per treatment).  
Figure 2: Effect of OMET growth technique on the stem diameter of okra during vegetative stage (n = 12 per treatment).  
in the okra pod samples grown under the OMET growing condition may be attributed to the greater number of branches, stem diameter and plant height. These results support those of [PERSON] et al. [26] and [PERSON] et al. [27], which suggests that the fresh pod yield in okra is a complex character depending on component traits such as the number of branches, stem diameter, plant height, root length, fresh pod length and width, the number of seeds per plant and number of pods per plant. This study also supported the findings of [PERSON] and [PERSON] [28] and showed that branching capacity in okra had a direct effect on the pod yield and phenotypic traits associated with yield response, which are useful for improving the yield potential of okra in climate-smart agriculture. The results obtained in this study were also supported by those of [PERSON] et al. [29], who reported that the use of plastic mulch significantly influenced the plant height, whereby okra yield was highest (8104 kg/ha) under silver plastic mulch. Plastic mulch enhanced the growth parameters such as the canopy length, plant height, leaf number, stem diameter, leaf length, and yield attributes of okra [14,15]. This may be attributed to the fact that plastic mulches can suppress annual weeds and offer other important benefits, such as organic matter, nutrients, moisture conservation, soil protection, and the moderation of soil temperature.