Contribution of Cattle Dung as an Alternative to Mineral Fertilization of Soils in Tomato (Lycopersicom esculenta) Production

The use of chemical fertilizers, which in the long term constitutes a source of environmental degradation, has led farmers to use organic sources as alternative soil amendments. However, use of organic fertilizers alone may not restore the fertility of highly degraded soils, hence the need for the integration of organic and mineral fertilizers. The objective of the study was to improve soil fertility and tomato productivity. The study was carried out using a Fisher block design, with three replicates established on sandy soils. Treatments T0 (control treatment), Tpp (500 kg ha-1of NPK), T1 (40 kg ha-1of cattle dung + 167 kg ha-1of NPK), T2 (40 kg ha-1of cattle dung + 250 kg ha-1of NPK), T3 (40 kg ha-1of cattle dung + 375 kg ha-1of NPK), T4 (40 kg ha-1of cattle dung + 500 kg ha-1of NPK) and T5 (40 kg ha-1of NPK of cattle dung) were applied to elementary plots of 20 m2 (5 m x 4 m). Cattle dung was applied one week before transplanting was done. On the other hand, split application of mineral fertilizer was done at transplanting and at the start of flowering. The height of the plants, the circumference at the collar, the diameter of the fruits, the average number of fruits and weights of harvested fruits were evaluated on 4 plants of the effective plot. The results obtained revealed that the addition of cattle dung to the soil made it possible to reduce the quantities of chemical fertilizer commonly used by tomato producers. Thus, T3 treatment (40 kg/ha of cattle dung as a single contribution of basal fertilizer + 375 kg/ha of NPK), or ¾ of the dose of chemical fertilizer commonly applied by producers, made it possible to improve the agronomic parameters of the tomato and obtained the highest tomato yields (16292.25 kg/ha). The cattle dung combination at a dose of 40 kg/ha + 375 kg/ha of NPK 15 15 15 is therefore, the optimum dose to provide for better tomato production.