Dib1, H. Ismail1, H. Shbat2 and R. Yousef3*
(1) General Authority of Agricultural Scientific Research, Tartous, Syria; (2) Animal Resources Division, General Authority of Agricultural Scientific Research, Homs, Syria; (3) Plant Protection Department, Faculty of Agricultural Engineering, University of Homs, Homs, Syria.
*Email address of the corresponding author: [email protected]
This study was conducted in Al-Dkika village, in the Akkar Plain, Tartous Governorate, during the 2023 agricultural season, to study the effect of adding vermicompost and biochar on the productivity of Capsicum annum L. (Serad) and its resistance to infection with the nematode Meloidogyne. The experiment included four treatments: a control without any addition, adding solid vermicompost only, adding biochar at a rate of 1% only, adding vermicompost + biochar at a rate of 1%. A completely randomized design was adopted, with three replicates for each treatment. The results obtained showed a positive effect of adding both vermicompost and biochar alone or combined, and the combined treatment gave the highest values for the following indicators: average dry weight of the plant (24 g), average number of flowers/plant (52.67 flowers/plant), average number of fruit set (24 fruits), average plant production (178.7 g). All treatments also led to a significant decrease in the root-knot nematode infection indicators, the best of which was the vermicompost with biochar treatment, which led to a decrease in the nematode density index in the soil by 72.9%, and the number of knots index by 81.95% compared to the untreated control.
Vermicompost, biochar, Capsicum annum, production, root-knot nematode.
https://doi.org/10.22268/AJPP-001441