Maximizing Vegetable Growth Potential: Evaluating the Synergistic Impact of Vermicompost and NPK Fertilizer Amended Soil
Maximizing Vegetable Growth Potential: Evaluating the Synergistic Impact of Vermicompost and NPK Fertilizer Amended Soil
Sairah Syed1, Rafia Urooj Saman1, Ayesha Manzoor1, Muhammad Arsalan1, Abdul Latif1*, Madeeha Khan1, Rehmat Ullah2, Muhamad Bilal2, Rizwan Latif3, Ejaz Ahmad4, Muhammad Amjad1, Muhammad Aslam5, Sair Sarwar6, Sabir Hussain Shah7 and Amaima Masood8
ABSTRACT
The beneficial effects of Vermicompost (VC) as an organic fertilizer on the growth and yield of plants are well studied. However, studies related to its utilization and effect in combination with reduced chemical fertilizers on plant growth are still limited. Therefore, this experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of varying levels of VC (0 and 2.5 tons/ha) and NPK (60:80:60 kg/ha or RDF, 75% RDF, 50% RDF, 25% RDF) fertilizers on the growth and yield of spinach, peas, and radish. In a Randomly Complete Block Design (RCBD), the soil for each plot was amended with different VC concentrations before sowing the seeds. The data collected was subjected to ANOVA at 5% level of significance. VC substitution (T1) in soil was helpful in enhancing the overall growth of all three vegetables as compared to control (T0). NPK alone (T2) was more helpful and further enhanced the vegetative growth as well as the yield of the studied vegetable plants. T3 as a combined VC and NPK treatment caused more enhancement in the growth of vegetable plants. With the increased VC and reduced NPK in T4, all three vegetable plants behaved significantly and depicted maximum yield as compared to T0. Whereas, T5 and T6 showed a gradual decline in the growth and yield of spinach, peas, and radish as compared to T4. The results of this experiment suggest that 1.5 tonns of VC per hectare of land is best suitable for vegetable production in clay loam soils of district Chakwal.
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