Effects of MykoPlus and Rates of Vermicompost on the Growth and Yield of Romaine Lettuce and on Soil Properties under Organic Farming System.

Abstract

The experiment was conducted at the Department of Soil Science Certified Organic Demo Farm, Benguet State University, La Trinidad Benguet from January to May 2016 to determine the effect of MykoPlus and vermicompost on the soil physical, chemical and biological properties; determine the effect of MykoPlus and vermicompost on the yield of romaine; and determine the interaction effect of MykoPlus and vermicompost on soil properties and yield of romaine lettuce. Application of MykoPlus and different rates of vermicompost were the factors studied. The different rates of vermicompost added were 3.73, 5.60, 7.46, 11.20 and 14.93 tons/ha. Application of MykoPlus had significantly affected, soil pH, final height leaf diameter, root length and individual weight of romaine lettuce with and without trimmings. On the other hand application of the different rates of vermicompost had significantly affected soil physical properties such as bulk density, water holding capacity; soil chemical properties such as soil pH, nitrogen, organic matter content, phosphorus and agronomic parameters namely final height, root length, leaf diameter individual weight of romaine lettuce with and without trimmings, marketable yield, non-marketable yield and total yield whereas among the rates of vermicompost, application of 14.93 tons/ha showed the best results. Interaction effect of MykoPlus and different rates of vermicompost application had no significant effect. On the other hand, controlled treatment registered the highest return on cash expense (ROCE) due to lower production cost.