International Journal of Plant & Soil Science

This study aimed to evaluate the effects of three poultry manure-based compost formulations on the growth and yield of chilli pepper (Capsicum chinense). A Fisher randomised complete block design was established with four treatments and four replicates from August to November 2022. The treatments comprised an unfertilised control (T0), direct application of solid compost (T1), and aqueous compost leachates collected after 5 days (T2) and 10 days (T3) of soaking in water. Plant survival, height, collar diameter, vigour index, and yield were assessed. Fourteen days after transplanting, survival rates were 75.00%, 94.53%, 85.15%, and 88.28% under T0, T1, T2, and T3, respectively. Plant height, collar diameter, and vigour index increased throughout the measurement period, with the strongest overall responses observed under T1. At 77 days after transplanting, plant height reached 46.49 cm under T1, compared with 42.24 cm under T2, 43.41 cm under T3, and 38.41 cm under T0. Yield was highest under T1 at 0.45 kg/plant (8.5 t/ha), followed by T3 at 0.38 kg/plant (6.8 t/ha), T2 at 0.35 kg/plant (6.1 t/ha), and T0 at 0.14 kg/plant (2.1 t/ha). Under the conditions of this study, direct solid-compost application produced the highest values for the measured agro-morphological parameters and yield. The 10-day leachate generally performed better than the 5-day leachate, suggesting that soaking time in water may influence leachate performance.