The effect of fertilization and biostimulants application on tomato production

BcA. Kadir Abubakar Sadique, BA (Hons)

Master's thesis

Abstract:

The use of mineral fertilizers has a negative impact on soil biochemical properties, environment as well as it causes some health implication. Scientists have established that some biological substances and microorganism (biostimulants), can help in reducing the amount of chemical use in food production and improves food quality. Some biological substances such us seaweed, humic substances, Trichoderma, Mycorrhizal fungi (Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi). Pseudomonas sp and Bacillus amyloliquefaciens have proven to be biofertilizers, which increase the availability of both macro and micronutrient in the soil and improves root and shoot length of plants as well as increase the yield quality. We examined the effect of Pseudomonas, Trichoderma, Bacillus amyloliquefaciens and mixture of the biostimulants in different fertilization regimes, with and without organic materials to analyze their effect on vegetative and generative growth and nutrient availability in the tomato plants. Adding bacteria solution resulted in no positive effect on vegetative growth and generative growth of the tomato plants but adding the organic fertilization resulted some of treatment have better generative growth. Furthermore, in terms of nutrient mobilization it has less impact. The cause for this could be that the strain of Pseudomonas, strain MS100 which just improve the growth and crop protection and did not improve nutrient mobilization. By the results, Pseudomonas, strain DSMZ 13134 mobilized the Mn in soil. Furthermore, CombiFect A had positive effect on sulfur content in tomato fruit. On the other hand, application of Trichoderma negatively influenced the content of zinc and iron in tomato fruits as well as iron uptake. CombiFect A had also negative influence on nitrogen uptake with tomato fruits. Our results are insufficient to definitively state that tested bioefstimulants have positive influence on investigated parameters. Therefore, further research is needed.

Keywords

vegetative growth and generative development, Fungi, Bacteria, Biostimulant, Nutrient, Food production

Language used: English

Date on which the thesis was submitted / produced: 17. 4. 2019

Thesis defence

• Supervisor: Ing. Martin Kulhánek, Ph.D.

Czech University of Life Sciences Prague

Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources

Master programme / field:
Engineering Ecology / Nature Conservation