Effects of Organic Enriched Basal Fertilizer on Productivity of Tomatoes (Lycopersicon esculentum) in Smallholder Farming of Hurungwe District in Zimbabwe

Abstract

A field experiment was carried out in Hurungwe district to determine the effects of organic enriched basal fertilizer (Compound C) on productivity of tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum). The experiment was laid out using a Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with three treatments and three replicates. There were three blocks and the blocking factor was slope. The treatments comprise of (Compound C) organic enriched fertilizer, (Compound C) chemical/inorganic enriched fertilizer and a control were no basal fertilizer was applied. Parameters evaluated include days to flowering and physiological maturity of tomatoes, number of fruits per plant, yield per hectare, shelf life of the produce and finally marketable yield. The data was analyzed using SPSS 17 and T-tests were used to compare the means. The results showed that there was a significant difference (P<0.05) in yield and shelf life from organic enriched fertilizer in comparison to chemical fertilizer. However chemical fertilizer recorded the highest yield of 37.3t ha^-1, whilst organic fertilizer recorded the highest number (9.2) of days before perishability of tomatoes. Treatments with no fertilizer recorded the lowest yield of 12.9t ha^-1, but there was no significant difference (P=0.068) in shelf life between no fertilizer and chemical treatments. There was also a significant difference (P<0.05) in days to 50% flowering, number of fruits per plant and marketable yield of tomatoes across the three treatments. From the results of the study, it can be concluded that organic enriched fertilizer can also be used for tomato production as there was a significant increase in yield and shelf life of tomatoes and hence are suitable for long distance markets. It can therefore be recommended that further research should be conducted to investigate the optimum rates of application of organic enriched fertilizer that produce higher yields than inorganic fertilizers.

Key words: organic enriched, productivity, tomatoes