HOME JOURNALS CONTACT

International Journal of Agricultural Research

Year: 2011 | Volume: 6 | Issue: 3 | Page No.: 255-267
DOI: 10.3923/ijar.2011.255.267
Exploring the Suitability of Coffee Pulp Compost as Growth Media Substitute in Greenhouse Production
Gezahegn Berecha, Fikre Lemessa and Mulatu Wakjira

Abstract: The current study was designed to evaluate (1) the feasibility of replacing commercial growing media with the different rates (0, 10, 50%) of coffee pulp compost on the height and above ground biomass of tomato in greenhouse bioassay and (2) the effect of top soil amendment with different rates (1, 5, 10% v/v) of coffee pulp composted with grass (CPCG) on the plant biomass of tomato in lath-house. Our results demonstrated that substitution of pro-mix by 10% coffee pulp compost significantly increased aerial biomass, seedling height and number of nodes per plant. Substitution of pro-mix with 10 and 50% coffee pulp compost increased seedling height by 20 and 4%, respectively, compared to pure pro-mix media. Unamended peat moss and peat moss substituted with lower rate (10%) of compost gave the lowest result in all response variables assessed. Top soil amended with 10% CPCG gave remarkably higher root fresh and dry weight and AGFW per pot compared with unamended top soil and top soil amended with 1% CPCG. In conclusion, substitution of Pro-mix media with coffee pulp compost up to 50% and amendment of top soil with 5 and 10% CPCG were found to be a good option for greenhouse/nursery tomato seedling production and field production of tomato, respectively. Furthermore, the possibility of managing coffee byproducts by utilization is demonstrated. However, the effects of substituting commercial growing media with different rates of coffee pulp compost on other commercially important crops worth investigation.

Fulltext PDF Fulltext HTML

How to cite this article
Gezahegn Berecha, Fikre Lemessa and Mulatu Wakjira, 2011. Exploring the Suitability of Coffee Pulp Compost as Growth Media Substitute in Greenhouse Production. International Journal of Agricultural Research, 6: 255-267.

Related Articles:
© Science Alert. All Rights Reserved