Ha-1 Vermicompost Research Articles

CONCENTRACIÓN DE NITRATOS EN DOS TIPOS COMERCIALES DE LECHUGA (Lactuca sativa L.) CULTIVADAS CON DISTINTAS FUENTES NITROGENADAS

Nitrate (NO3 -) can transform into nitrite (NO2 -) in the human body and nitrites can change normal hemoglobin to methemoglobin, contributing to the formation of carcinogenic nitrosamines. Lettuce is one of the vegetables with a high capacity to accumulate nitrates. The objective of this study was to evaluate the response of lettuce to increasing doses of nitrogen applied as urea and the addition of vermicompost on the nitrate leaf content of two commercial types of lettuce: cv. Daguan (butterhead) and cv. Brisa (loose-leaf). Two field trials were conducted simultaneously in two growing seasons: autumn-winter and spring. One trial consisted of compost 24 t ha-1 vermicompost-(L1) added and a control treatment (L0) with no amendment, while the other treatment consisted of 75 kg N ha-1 (N1) and 150 kg N ha-1 (N2) applied as urea, also with a control treatment without fertilization (N0). The experimental design was a randomized complete block, split-plot design with four replications. Nitrate concentration was measured by colorimetry during growth and harvest. A decreasing level of nitrate concentration was observed in both trials during the winter period. Nitrate concentration was influenced by genotype, fertilization treatments and seasons. A higher level of nitrates was observed in the vermicompost treatment with ‘Brisa’ in both seasons. In the autumn-winter season, ‘Brisa’ presented a higher response to urea application, recording higher levels of nitrates at harvest compared to ‘Daguan’. No response to fertilization was observed in the spring and only the treatment consisting of 150 kg N ha-1 (N2) in ‘Brisa’ resulted in higher leaf nitrate content at harvest.

Optimizing Yield and Nutrients Content in Tomato by Vermicompost Application under Greenhouse Conditions

Optimizing yield and nutrients content in crop production is the high time demand of arable farming. Vermicompost furnishes one of the most promising alternatives to costly chemical fertilizer. Therefore, a greenhouse experiment was conducted at NARC, Islamabad, to investigate the effect of different levels of vermicompost [having C/N=15/1 and 14 Plant Growth Promoting Rhizobacteria (PGPR)] on growth, yield and nutrients content in hybrid tomato (National Tunnel Tomato-04-08) under greenhouse conditions during Rabi 2015. The data revealed that different rates (0.5 t·ha-1, 1 t·ha-1, 1.5 t·ha-1 and 2 t·ha-1) of vermicompost produced varied and significant (P < 0.05) effect on the vegetative growth parameters (shoot length, root length, dry shoot weight and dry root weight), yield parameters (number of fruits per treatment and total yield) recorded at physiological maturity. Tomato fruit yield was the maximum (4.383 t·ha-1) at the application of 2.0 t vermicompost ha-1 followed by 3.226 t·ha-1 where vermicompost was applied @ 1.5 t·ha-1. N, P and K content in tomato fruit and plant increased significantly with the application of increasing levels of vermicompost. The highest content of N (3.7%), P (0.67%), K (5.17%) in tomato fruit and N (3.4%), P (0.32%), K (3.2%) in tomato plant respectively were registered with soil application of vermicompost @ 2.0 t·ha-1. This study confirms that the vermicompost has a tremendous potential of plant nutrients supply for sustainable crop production.

Effect of vermicompost and phosphorus on nutrient content, uptake and quality in fenugreek (Trigonella foenum graceum L.)

A field experiment was conducted on loamy sand soil during Rabi season of 2009-10 to study the effect of verimcompost and phosphorus on nutrient content, uptake and quality in fenugreek (Trigonella foenum graceum L.). Application of 4.0 t vermicompost significantly increased the nitrogen content in seed, protein content, nitrogen uptake in seed and straw. While application of 6.0 t vermicompost ha-1 significantly increased the phosphorus content in seed, straw, phenol content, total nitrogen uptake, phosphorus uptake in seed, straw and total.Application of 2.0 t vermicompost ha-1 significantly increased the nitrogen content in seed, straw.Application of 40 kg phosphorus ha-1 significantly increased the nitrogen content in seed, straw, phosphorus content in straw, protein content in seed, nitrogen uptake in seed, straw, total and phosphorus uptake in straw. Application of 60 kg phosphorus ha-1 significantly increased the phosphorus content in seed, phenol content, phosphorus uptake in seed and total.

Analyzing the Efficacy of Organic and Inorganic Sources of Nitrogen and Phosphorus on Growth of Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera Dunal.)

Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera Dunal.) is an important medicinal plant whose roots are prescribed as medicine for several disorders of females, bronchitis, dropsy, stomach problems, lung inflammation, tuberculosis, arthritis, skin diseases and male impotency. The present experiment was designed to work out a suitable dose of organic manures and fertilizers for ashwagandha. Treatments consisted of nitrogenous (N) and phosphatic (P) fertilizers at 20 kg ha-1 and 40 kg ha-1 each, and two levels of farm yard manure (FYM) and vermicompost and combinations thereof, along with control. The treatments were replicated thrice in Randomized Block Design. Results revealed that application of 40 kg ha-1 of N and P each as urea and SSP + 2.5 t ha-1 vermicompost registered significant values for plant height, number of branches per plant, leaf area, yield attributing traits, root (8.60 q ha-1) and seed yield (85.6 kg ha-1) as well as soil physical properties like organic carbon, hydraulic conductivity and water retention at 33 and 1500kpa besides the highest B:C ratio (2.57).

The effect of sheep-manure vermicompost on quantitative and qualitative properties of cucumber ( Cucumis sativus L.) grown in the greenhouse

This experiment aims to evaluate the effects of vermicompost produced from sheep manure on growth, yield and quality of 2 fruit cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) varieties (cv. ‘Sultan F1’ and cv. ‘Storm F1’) under greenhouse condition. Four vermicompost treatments at the rate of 0 (control), 10, 20 and 30 t ha-1 were incorporated into the top 15 cm of soil. During the experiment, fruits were harvested three times per week and fruit number and weight were recorded for 3 months. Leaf number, plant height and chlorophyll content were measured at 30, 60 and 90 days after transplanting, while leaf area, stem and leaf dry weight and fruit qualitative properties were evaluated at 90 days after transplanting. The results showed that leaf number, plant height and chlorophyll content increased significantly (P
0.05) compared to control plots for both varieties at 30, 60 and 90 days after transplanting. The plots treated with 30 t ha-1 vermicompost showed increase in leaf are, stem and leaf dry weight for both varieties. The application of vermicompost at 30 t ha-1 increased total fruit yield 26% for cv. ‘Sultan F1’ and 25% for cv. ‘Storm F1’ compared to the control. The plots treated with vermicompost at 30 t ha-1 enhanced fruit number per plant 26% for cv. ‘Sultan F1’ and 25% for cv. ‘Storm F1’ than plot without vermicompost. Fruit harvested from plants receiving vermicompost had higher total soluble solid (TSS), lower juice acidity and more dry matter than plots without vermicompost. Growth and yield parameters were improved with increasing vermicompost rates up to 20 t ha-1. There are no significant different between plots at 20 and 30 t ha-1 vermicompost in all evaluated parameters.

Rehabilitation of Co-disposed Diamond Tailings: Growth Medium Rectification Procedures and Indigenous Grass Establishment

In the present study tailing dam rehabilitation (revegetation)of De Beers operated diamond mines in South Africa was investigated by doing pot and field trials. Since the reclamation of mine tailings is a challenging task, the type and optimum concentration of organic materials and chemical ameliorants to be applied for the rehabilitation process was evaluated. Further the grass species most effective for rehabilitation was also investigated. In both the pot and field trials Cenchrus ciliaris and Cynodon dactylon were the most successful species, although their densities were low. The field amelioration that has shown the best results was a 60 tons ha-1 vermicompost application with a fertiliser treatment of CaNO3 (25 kg ha-1) and MgNO3 (12.5 kg ha-1). Overall the results indicate that initial vegetation establishment during the first six months on the co-disposed material was slow even under large applications of organic fertilisers, but it is clear that without proper seeding of the plots no vegetation will establish on the co-disposed material.

Efficacy of Different Organic Manures and Inorganic Fertilizer on the Yield and Yield Attributes of Boro Rice

This study was conducted to evaluate the efficacy of different organic manure and inorganic fertilizer on the yield and yield attributes of Boro Rice (Oryza sativa L.). The experiment consisted of 8 treatments, T0: Control, T1: 100% N100P15K45S20 (Recommended dose), T2: 50% NPKS + 5 t cowdung ha-1, T3: 70% NPKS + 3 t cowdung ha-1, T4: 50% NPKS + 4 t poultry manure ha-1, T5: 70% NPKS + 2.4 t poultry manure ha-1, T6: 50% NPKS + 5 t vermicompost ha-1and T7: 70% NPKS + 3 t vermicompost ha-1. At 30, 50, 70, 90 DAT and at harvest stage the tallest plant (24.18, 31.34, 44.67, 67.05 and 89.00 cm) and the greatest number of total tiller per hill (5.43, 11.64, 21.01 and 17.90) at same DAT was recorded from T5 and the lowest was observed from T0 in every aspect. The maximum number of effective tillers per hill (13.52), the longest panicle (24.59 cm), maximum number of total grain per plant (97.45), the highest weight of 1000 seeds (21.80 g), the maximum grain yield (7.30 t ha-1) and straw yield (7.64 t ha-1) was recorded from T5 treatment whereas the lowest number of effective tillers per hill (6.07) , the shortest panicle (16.45 cm) , the minimum total grain per plant (69.13) , the lowest weight of 1000 seeds (16.73 g), the lowest grain yield (2.06 t ha-1) and straw yield (4.63 t ha-1) was observed from T0 treatment. Although the highest biological yield was recorded from T5 treatment but statistically similar result were found from T3, T4 and T7 treatments. The highest harvest index also recorded for T5 treatment. It was obvious that yield of rice can be increased substantially with the judicious application of organic manure with chemical fertilizer. Keywords: Cowdung; poultry manure; vermicompost; NPKS; yield; yield contributing characters; boro rice DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/agric.v9i1-2.9486 The Agriculturists 2011; 9(1&amp;2): 117-125