Effect of Different Biofertilizer Applications on Soil Health, Tomato Growth, and Yield
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Biofertilizers, including Phosphate Solubilizing Bacteria (PSB), Azotobacter, and Trichoderma, play a vital role in enhancing soil fertility, nutrient uptake, and sustainable crop productivity by improving crop growth and yield. This study aimed to assess the effects of biofertilizer on the growth and yield of tomato plants and on soil health. The experiment was carried out implementing a Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with four replications. The study consisted of six treatments combinations and the treatments consisted of the following groups: T 0 = Control, T 1 = recommended dose of chemical fertilizer (RDF), T 2 = (75% RDF) + Azotobacter, T 3 = (75% RDF) + Phosphorus Solubilizing bacteria (PSB), T 4 = (75% RDF) + PSB + Azotobacter, T 5 = (75% RDF) + PSB + Azotobacter + Trichoderma. The maximum growth and yield data were recorded from T 5 with plant height (84.67 cm), leaves per plant (54), leaf length (8 cm), branches per plant (5.56), flowers per plant (16.62), flowers cluster per plant (4.93), fruits per cluster (4.68), number of fruits per plant (25.75), individual fruit weight (54.43 g), yield per plant (1.35 kg), yield per plot (8.13 kg), and yield per hectare (81.31 ton), yield increase over control 117.81%, most considerable individual fruit length of (32.95 cm), fruit diameter (32.23 cm), fresh weight (156.50g) and dry weight of the plant (119g). On the other hand, T 0 showed negative results in most of the studied parameters compared to other treatments. Correlation and multivariate analyses further revealed strong positive associations among yield-related traits, including fruit yield per plant, individual fruit weight, and leaf number, indicating their key contribution to overall productivity. The hierarchical cluster heatmap clearly separated T 5 due to its superior response across traits, while principal component analysis (PCA) explained 75.4% of the total variance, clearly differentiating biofertilizer treatments by performance. Overall, the T 5 demonstrated superior values for these features in comparison to the other treatments. The findings suggest that integrating PSB, Azotobacter, and Trichoderma with reduced chemical fertilizers can effectively enhance tomato productivity while promoting sustainable soil health.
