Abstract
The production of tomato is constrained in the coastal area of Patuakhali. Minimizing soil salinity through fertilizer management practices is very important for tomato cultivation in the saline soil. An experiment was carried out at a farmer’s field in a coastal area at Rangabali upazila of Patuakhali district of Bangladesh from November 2025 to March 2026 to investigate the effects of cowdung and recommended NPK chemical fertilizer on the growth and yield contributing characteristics of tomatoes. The experiment was laid out in RCBD with three replications with comprised four fertilizer treatments, such as T1 (No fertilizer), T2 (cowdung @10 tha-1), T3 (100% Recommended NPK chemical fertilizer) and T4 (cowdung @ 5 tha-1 + 50% recommended chemical NPK fertilizers). As per the recommended NPK chemical fertilizers (T2), specific plots were fertilized at the rate of 300 kg of urea, 200 kg of triple super phosphate (TSP) and 250 kg of muriate of potash (MP) per hectare. A hybrid tomato variety, namely Bijli-11, was used as a test crop. Fertilizers have significant effects on plant growth and yield contributing characters of tomatoes. The combination of cowdung and NPK chemical fertilizer treated plots produced a higher yield. The highest yield (93.97 tha-1) was observed in those plots which fertilized cowdung (5 tha-1) with 50% recommended NPK chemical fertilizers (T4) due to a greater average number of fruit plants-1 (21.57) and average individual fruit weight (109.08g). Integrated nutrient management is the best option for higher tomato production in coastal areas. So, to get a higher yield of tomato in the coastal area of Patuakhali district, the application of cowdung @ 5 tha-1 in combination with the 50% recommended NPK chemical fertilizer is recommended.
Keywords: Tomato; Saline area; Chemical fertilizer; Manure; Growth; Yield
