Growth And Yield Performance of Bell Pepper (Capsicum Annuum L.) As Applied with Vermitea as Organic Fertilizer

The study was conducted to determine the growth and yield performance of bell peppers (Capsicum annuum L.) as applied with vermicompost as an organic fertilizer. The experiment was conducted from November 2019 to February 2020. It was laid out in Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with five treatments and replicated three times as follows: treatment 1 (control); treatment 2 (150 ml of vermitea/liter of water); treatment 3 (200 ml of vermitea/liter of water); treatment 4 (250 ml of vermitea/liter of water); and treatment 5 (300 ml of vermitea/liter of water). The parameters measured were initial plant height (15, 30, and 45 DAP), number of marketable fruits, number of non-marketable fruits, number of fruits harvested, weight of marketable fruits, weight of non-marketable fruits, weight of fruits harvested, yield in tons per hectare, and return on investment. Statistical analysis revealed a highly significant difference in the initial plant height at 15, 30, and 45 days after planting (DAP), as well as the number and weight of marketable fruits. Moreover, there was also a significant difference in the number of fruits harvested. However, there was no significant difference in the number of non-marketable fruits, weight of non-marketable fruits, weight of fruits harvested, and yield in tons/hectare. Treatment 2 achieved the highest return on investment of 68.22%.