Title : Effect of aqueous solutions of Azolla, Chromolaena and poultry manure on growth and yield components of tomato
Abstract:
Organic food is nowadays cherished by the consumers compared to mineral food due to health issues. Field experiment was conducted at Adeyemi Federal University of Education Teaching and Research Farm, Ondo, Southwest Nigeria in 2023 to compare the effect of aqueous solutions of Azolla, Chromolaena and Poultry manure on growth and yield components of tomato. Ten (10) kg of each of Azolla, Chromolaena and Poultry manure were individually mixed with 10litres of water and left for 2weeks. 400kg/ha of NPK:15:15 fertilizer was applied in solid form after 2 weeks of planting, 50ml each of Azolla, Chromolaena and Poultry manure were applied at the root of the tomato at 2 weeks interval. The treatments were arranged on Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) and were replicated three (3) times. The soil used for the experiment was deficient in OM, N and P. The soil used was sandy loam. Azolla and Poultry manure contained reasonable amount of N, P and K and were alkaline in nature. Compared with control, Azolla, Chromolaena, Poultry manure and NPK fertilizer significantly increased the leaf wet weight, leaf dry weight and Biomass of tomato. Azolla had the highest dry root weight. Compared with control, all the treatments significantly increased number of fruits and fruit weight of tomato. Application of aqueous form of Chromolaena and Poultry manure is recommended as source of organic fertilizer to increase the growth and yield of tomato in Southwestern part of Nigeria. Solutions of the plant residues had better residual effect compared with the mineral fertilizer in respect to pH, organic matter, N, P, K , Ca and Mg contents of the soil.
Keywords: Azolla, Chromolaena, Poultry Manure, NPK 15:15:15 Fertilizer, Growth
