Influence of Microben and /or Compost Tea and Vermicompost Tea on Pepper (Capsicum annuum L.)...

An afield experiment was conducted to study using compost tea and vermicompost tea as alternates for mineral fertilizers used in the production of pepper (Capsicum annuum L.). Agronomic trials were conducted in the 2024 season in a pot of silty clay soil. The experimental design was a randomized complete block; it consisted of seven treatments with three replicates, and it was like this: control, NPK, tea compost (CT), vermicompost tea (VT), tea compost + vermicompost tea (CT+VT), tea compost + microben (CT+M), and vermicompost tea + microben (VT+M). Results showed that the compost tea added with vermicompost tea gave the highest values for plant characteristics, including fresh and dry plant weight, number of leaves and branches, plant length, and chlorophyll content. The compost tea added with vermicompost tea gave the highest values for plant characteristics, including fresh and dry plant weight, number of leaves and branches, plant length, chlorophyll content, and available nitrogen concentration in soil (280 ppm). The plant's nitrogen content recorded the highest value (3.9%) in treating vermicompost tea with microben. The acidity values increased under the influence of vermicompost tea, and the highest value was 8.37. Therefore, adding compost tea with vermicompost tea is preferable to taking advantage of its nutrient content and minimizing its effect on soil pH and salt concentration. Compost tea and vermicompost tea can be effective in improving pepper plant growth and soil fertility with the potential to add microbes to enhance nutrient uptake.