Impact of organic amendments and compost extracts on tomato production and storability in agroecological systems

Abstract

The sustainability of a farm system greatly relies on fertilizers and other inputs. Soil factors such as texture and local rainfall, along with management-related factors such as soil organic matter, aggregate stability and agronomic practices, have much greater influence on the sustainability of any given farm than do the type or amount of soil amendments. Growers use a wide variety of practices to maintain or improve soil health in organic vegetable production systems. These practices generally are part of long-term, site-specific management programs that aim at developing fertile and biologically active soils that readily capture and store water and nutrients, have good tilth, and suppress plant diseases. Field experiments were conducted in 2005 and 2006 in Mashhad, Iran, to study the effects of organic amendments, synthetic fertilizers and compost extracts on crop health, productivity and storability of tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.). Treatments included different fertilizers of cattle, sheep and poultry manures, green-waste and household composts and chemical fertilizers of urea and superphosphate; and five aqueous extracts from cattle manure, poultry manures, green-waste, and household composts plus water as control. Our results show that application of poultry manure showed lower disease incidence, as shown by 80% healthy tomato, compared with the other fertilizers. However, the organic fertilizers used did not give higher yields compared with chemical fertilizers. Sheep manure and chemical fertilizers led to the highest total tomato yield. Marketable yield was highest in poultry manures, of 16 t/ha, and lowest in chemical fertilizer, of 7 t/ha, 6 weeks after storage. The effect of aqueous extracts was not significant on either crop health or tomato yield and the results were inconsistent. The compost made of poultry manure therefore appears to be a promising ecological alternative to classical fertilizers. compost / crop health / lycopersicum esculentum / manure / marketable yield

Utilization of manure and green organic composts as alternative fertilizers for cauliflower production

“…Availability of phosphorusnot onlycrucial forvegetative growth but also for the formation of cauliflower curd. Organic compost fertilizers from manure or from trailing-daisy weeds enhanched availibility of phosporus and potassium in addition to elements of mineral fertilizers (Ghorbani et al, 2008;Mahmoud et al, 2009). Fertilization at the age of 20 and 30 days after planting will supply the adequacy and availability of nutrients for growth and development of cauliflower and curd formation.…”

“…Cow manure contains a number of nutrients that can improve physical, chemical and biological properties of soil (Suparman and Supiati, 2004). The use of cow manure can improve the growth and yield some crops such as maize, soybean, cucumber, and some vegetable crops (Mucheru-Muna and Mugendi, 2007;Ghorbani et al, 2008;Mahmoud et al, 2009;Jahan et al, 2014).…”

Plant nutrient supply determines competition between phytophagous insects

“…The effect of fertilizer type on induced concentrations of glucosinolates has not been previously investigated. Fertilizers used in the current study included a mineral source of nitrogen (ammonium nitrate) and two fertilizers that contained nitrogen derived from animal sources: organic chicken manure, which is regularly used in organic horticulture [25,26]; and an intermediate fertilizer that contains animal-derived nitrogen (hoof and horn) and mineralderived potassium (John Innes base fertilizer). Potassium availability can affect nitrogen uptake by plants, which has the potential to alter plant -phytophage interactions [27].…”

Turning Waste Into a Resource for Remediation of Contaminated Soil in Tropical Developing Countries

“…have been manipulated in order to optimize plant disease suppression [31]. To date, consensus on optimum production parameters for disease suppression hasn't been reached and some studies report inconsistency in the performance [41,70]. However a number of reports have shown that aeration and additions of nutrients lead to significant increases of the cell mass of active bacteria [30,31,49].…”