Evaluation of biofertilizers and biochar on the growth characteristics and yield of hot pepper

Abstract

Abstract. Appah GB, Nkansah GO, Amoatey C. 2021. Effect of the media type and auxin concentration on the growth of cuttings seedlings of pepper. Cell Biol Dev 5: 32-42. The research was conducted to investigate the effects of High Yield Technology (HYT) biofertilizers, biochar, and inorganic fertilizer on the growth and yield of pepper. The experiment consisted of three factors (HYT, Biochar and inorganic fertilizer) at three levels each (HYT: 100%, 50% and 0%); Biochar: 7t/ha, 3.5t/ha and 0t/ha; inorganic fertilizer: 100%, 50% and 0% of recommended rate). There were twenty-seven treatments with three replications arranged in a randomized complete block design (RCBD). Data were collected on plant height, diameter, number of leaves, number of fruits per plant, yield (t/ha), and soil chemical and microbial properties. The analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to analyze the data. The results indicated that applying HYT biofertilizers and biochar significantly affected plant height, stem girth, number of leaves and fruit yield, and plant nutrients. The results revealed that 3.5t/ha to 7t/ha biochar + 50-100% HYT biofertilizer combination increased the yield of hot pepper. Microbial count before and after planting also significantly increased with biofertilizers.