SYNERGISTIC EFFECT OF MICROBIAL AND NON-MICROBIAL BIOSTIMULANTS ON GROWTH, YIELD AND NUTRITIONAL QUALITY OF ORGANIC TOMATO

Abstract

The present pot experiment was conducted at the Horticulture Farm of Sher-eBangla

Agricultural University, Dhaka from October 2017 to April 2018 to evaluate the effects of three biostimulants Trichoderma based biostimulants (TB), Seaweed Extract (SWE), Humic Substance (HS) and their combinations on growth, yield, nutritional quality and antioxidant properties of tomato. The experiment was laid out in Completely Randomized Design with four replications. The study was comprised of 13 treatments : T 0 = Control (No biostimulants), T = 25g/l TB, T 2 = 50g/l TB, T 3 = 75g/l TB, T 4 = 2 g/l SWE, T 5 = 10 g/l HS, T = 25 g/l TB + 2 g/l SWE, T 7 = 25 g/l TB + 10 g/l HS, T 8 = 50 g/l TB + 2 g/l SWE, T = 50 g/l TB + 10 g/l HS, T 10 = 75 g/l TB+ 2 g/l SWE, T 11 6 = 75g/l TB + 10 g/L HS, T = 2 g/l SWE + 10g/l HS, respectively. The results revealed that, T positively increased growth attributes resulting from the synergistic impact with better nutrient uptake and increased the yield (179.61%) over the control. The treatment T also elicited an increase in total soluble solids as well as bioactive molecules such as lycopene and ascorbic acid, thereby increasing the nutritional and functional quality of the tomato fruits. Therefore, soil drenching of Trichoderma with seaweed extract may be considered as a noble strategy for sustainable tomato production with higher yield and superior quality.