A Comparative Study of the Fertilizer-Cum-Pesticide Effect of Vermicomposts Derived from Cowdung and the Toxic Weed Lantana

Naseer Hussain, Tabassum-Abbasi, Tasneem Abbasi and Shahid Abbas Abbasi
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Naseer Hussain: Centre for Pollution Control & Environmental Engineering, Pondicherry University, Chinakalapet, Puducherry 605014, India
Tabassum-Abbasi: School of Engineering, University of Petroleum and Energy Studies, Bidholi, Dehradun 248007, India
Tasneem Abbasi: Centre for Pollution Control & Environmental Engineering, Pondicherry University, Chinakalapet, Puducherry 605014, India
Shahid Abbas Abbasi: Centre for Pollution Control & Environmental Engineering, Pondicherry University, Chinakalapet, Puducherry 605014, India

Agriculture, 2021, vol. 11, issue 12, 1-9

Abstract: The effect of vermicomposts, derived either from cowdung or the pernicious invasive plant lantana ( Lantana camara ), has been assessed on the seed germination, plant growth, fruit yield, quality of the produce, and disease resistance of a common vegetable, ladies finger ( Abelmoschus esculentus ).Seeds of A. esculentus were germinated and grown in soil fertilized with 0, 2.5, 3.75 and 5 t ha −1 of lantana or cowdung vermicompost for 4 months. It was seen that the lantana vermicompost performed at par or better than the cowdung vermicompost in terms of most of the growth and yield parameters observed. Both the vermicomposts encouraged the germination, growth as well as the yield of ladies fingers. The fruits harvested from the vermicompost-treated plots had greater concentrations of minerals, proteins and carbohydrates than the control plants. Vermicomposts also reduced the incidence of pest attacks on the plants. The results confirm that vermicomposting destroys the harmful ingredients of lantana and turns it into as good a biofertilizer, perhaps even better than the vermicompost of cow-dung. The very large quantities of lantana biomass that is generated in the tropical and sub-tropical regions of the world every year, which presently go to waste, now appear capable of becoming a source of organic fertilizer.

Keywords: allelopathy; lantadene; weeds control; vermicomposting; organic fertilizer (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q10 Q11 Q12 Q13 Q14 Q15 Q16 Q17 Q18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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