RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN TIME OF APPLICATION OF BIOSTIMULANT AND TOMATO GROWTH IN RIVERS STATE
Abstract
This study investigates the effect of timing in applying Chlorella vulgaris biostimulant on tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) growth under tropical rainforest conditions in Rivers State, Nigeria. Conducted at the University of Port Harcourt, the experiment compared two tomato varieties, Roma VF and Platinum F1, across various growth parameters in a controlled environment. The experimental setup, a 2×4 Completely Randomised Design with eight treatment combinations, examined the impacts of Chlorella vulgaris applied before and at transplanting, weekly thereafter, alongside controls using NPK fertilisation and no treatment (0CV). Results demonstrated that applying Chlorella vulgaris at transplanting significantly enhanced plant growth. Plants exhibited superior height, stem girth, leaf count, leaf area, and truss number, outperforming the NPK and 0CV controls. Notably, Platinum F1, with its heightened responsiveness to early biostimulant application, achieved greater height, leaf area, and truss numbers than Roma VF. This indicates a possible genetic predisposition towards benefiting from biostimulants, as previously suggested by research on hybrid crop performance.
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