Effect Of Various Combinations Of Organic Fertilizers On Yield And Its Components And Evaluation Of Three Extraction Methods On Seed Quality Of Tomato (Lycopersicon Esculentum) In Ghana

ABSTRACT Tomato is one of the most important vegetable crops in the world which is either consumed fresh or as a paste. The high cost of chemical fertilizers has led to farmers turning to alternative methods of cultivation like the use of organic manure. Most organic waste can be turned into fertilizer at low cost for crop production. Information on the effects of different extraction duration methods on seed quality and the costs involved have not been documented under production conditions in Ghana. The objectives of this study were to 1) determine optimal combinations of organic manure for maximum yield in tomato cultivation, 2) to determine the effects of seed extraction techniques on quality seed production as well as 3) cost benefit analysis for seed extraction and fruit production. The tomato variety used in the study was Pectomech, the most common tomato variety grown in Ghana due to its high yielding and tolerant to the environment. The research consist of seven treatments namely: cow dung 20 tons/ha, poultry manure 20 tons/ha, cow dung 10 tons/ha + poultry manure 10 tons/ha, cow dung 15 tons/ha + poultry manure 5 tons/ha, cow dung 5 tons/ha + poultry manure 15 tons/ha, NPK 150 kg/ha + urea 100 kg/ha and a control without application of organic manure no chemical fertilizer. The organic manures were applied on plots and incorporated into the soil. The experimental design used was a randomized complete block design with four replicates. Data collected included, chlorophyll content of leaves, number of branches per plant, number of leaves per plant, plant height, stem diameter, days to 50% flowering, day to 50% fruiting, days to 50% ripening, marketable fruit number and its weight, unmarketable fruit number and its weight, and yield per hectare in kilograms. Subsequently the following data was collected on extracted seeds (weight germination, iii and seedling height. The treatment effects produced significant differences (P = 0.05) in, days to 50% flowering, fruiting, and fruit ripening. The seeds obtained by extraction methods revealed cow dung manure at 20 tons/ha produced the maximum seed weight per hectare (55.8 kg/ha) whilst the control produced the least (20.6 kg/ha). Tomato seeds extracted and fermented for two days resulted in good quality seed (98.7% germination - blotter method; 86.5% germination - seed tray method) and seedlings (height 9.6 cm). Fermenting of seeds for two days was the most profitable extraction method.