Determination of the Possibilities of Using Different Compost Materials as Seedling Growing Medias in Tomato, Cucumber and Pepper

Abstract

In the environmental context of Türkiye, the quantity of organic matter present in the soil is a crucial factor that affects its productivity potential. While peat offers an optimal growth condition, it is an expensive material due to its limited availability globally, and in Türkiye. Hence, the research employed compost, which could be a viable replacement for peat, and is a sustainable, and independent alternative resource. The study examined the effects of 13 diverse growing media, both in pure, and mixed form, which included a control treatment of a 2:1 peat to perlite mixture, and three composts derived from grape, apple, and tomato pulps. The research investigated various growth criteria, such as seedling height, hypocotyl length, and diameter, number of leaves per seedling, root length, seedling dry weight, and root dry weight of tomato, cucumber, and pepper plants. The study indicated that grape compost, apple compost, tomato compost:peat:perlite (GAT:P:P), and grape compost:peat:perlite (G:P:P) were viable alternatives to the traditional peat/perlite mixture for tomato seedlings. Similarly, grape compost (G), apple compost (A), and apple compost:perlite (A:P) showed potential as substitutes for cucumber seedlings while apple compost (A) proved a possible option for chilli seedlings. In particular, the treatments using solely apple or grape composts, or a combination of both, exhibited superior performance in comparison to the control treatment.

Keywords

• compost
• cucumber
• pepper
• seedling
• tomato