dc.description.abstract |
Water hyacinth has adverse impacts on human health, economic development, environment due to
its rapid spread and ecological adaptability. Water hyacinth has been found to be used as
vermicomposting raw material. Hence, the present study was conducted with the objective of
evaluating the effectiveness of water hyacinth vermicompost on tomato physiochemical
characteristics and soil fertility at local level. Vermicomposting experiment was done using Eisenia
fetida with four treatments. The productivity and the chemical analysis of vermicompost were
recorded after 110 days. On the other hand, agronomic field experiment was done with six
treatments. A randomized complete block design approach was applied for the two field
experiments to control variation in an experiment by accounting for spatial effects. All data were
collected through direct observation and laboratory experiments accordingly. The combination of
water hyacinth sludge and cow manure had the highest vermicompost productivity output followed
by that of water hyacinth root and cow manure. The highest electrical conductivity mean value was
measured in vermicompost of water hyacinth root plus shoot and cow manure. Also, the highest pH
value was recorded in vermicompost produced from the mixture of water hyacinth root and cow
manure. Besides, application of 10 ton ha-1
vermicompost dose gives highest mean difference of
stem diameter, number of branches, area of leaf, fruit number, fruit weight, fruit length and fruit
diameter of tomato plant compared to the all other treatments including the control group. The
application of this dose was also better in tomato fruit quality measures done in this study. In this
study it is evident that water hyacinth with cow manure in predetermined quantity can be used for
the production of vermicompost. It can be also concluded that application of 10 ton ha-1
vermicompost was the most suitable dose for improving tomato vegetative and fruit physiochemical
characteristics seen in this study. Therefore, it is recommended to use water hyacinth vermicompost
for enhancing tomato productivity and fruit quality. Also, it is vital to use vermicomposting as a
non-polluting approach in integrated management of the weed in Lake Tana. |
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