Effects of Various Feed Sources Vermicompost on Lettuce (<i>Lactuca Sativa L</i>) Growth Performance at Hawassa

The research was conducted to study the effects of vermicompost produced from various biodegradable wastes on lettuce growth performance. The experiment was conducted at Hawassa University, College of Agriculture during 2022 cropping season. The experiment consisted of 8 treatments, 7 treatments were using vermicomposts produced from agro-industrial wastes such as avocado and coffee husk and agricultural waste (cow dung and enset produced at Hawassa University, College of Agriculture and negative control (without vermicompost amendment) was included as check. The treatments were arranged in RCBD with 3 replications. The plot size was 1.5 m*1.5m. The spacing between plants and rows were 0.25 m and 0.3 m respectively. 8 t/ha vermicompost was added to each plot. The data were analyzed using SAS software version 9.3. vermicompost prepared from all feeding materials had significantly (p <0.05) higher lettuce yield, dry weight, plant height, root length, and leaf area than the negative control. However, the highest lettuce yield (20.25 t/ha) was recorded from vermicompost produced from organic materials such as coffee husk+ avocado waste + enset waste + cow dung followed by vermicompost produced from coffee husk + cow dung. Similarly, the highest dry weight (10.09 %) was found from vermicompost produced from mixed biowaste of coffee husk + cow dung. Therefore, from the present study, it could be concluded that vermicompost prepared from coffee husk + cow dung and coffee husk + avocado waste + enset waste + cow dung are suitable biowaste for lettuce production in Sidama area.