A Study on the Eff ect of Bitt ern Treatments with Organic Ferti lizers on the Growth of Tomato

Abstract

Bitt ern, a byproduct of the solar salt producti on process has been studied for its potenti al to become a cost-eff ecti ve ferti lizer due to its high ion concentrati on. However, high salt toxicity and low levels of phosphorus and nitrogen have aff ected its ability to supply the plant’s nutriti onal requirements on its own fully. Here we observe its success as a ferti lizer when paired with known organic, nutriti onal sources such as Gliricidia sepium and Vermi-wash in the growth of Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) a crop of high commercial value and nutriti on, that is culti vated in Sri Lanka during both agricultural seasons. These two components when added to diluted Bitt ern were able to provide nutrients that Bitt ern did not contain. Certain combinati ons of rati os of the three components were revealed to be more successful than others with the combinati on of Bitt ern 25%, Gliricidia leaf pulp, and Vermi-wash 25% leading to a 63% overall increase in growth parameters, surpassing the increment of its respecti ve control group. This indicated that Bitt ern could be uti lized to develop a substi tute for expensive inorganic ferti lizers by pairing it with other low-cost, organic nutriti onal sources such as Gliricidia sepium and Vermi-wash. This may also be a more environmentally friendly substi tute for syntheti c ferti lizers.