GROWTH RESPONSE OF TOMATO PLANTS (Lycopersicum esculentum Mill.) TO LIQUID ORGANIC FERTILIZER (LOF) APPLICATION

This study aimed to determine the effect of liquid organic fertilizer on tomato plant growth. This study was conducted at the Field Laboratory of Experimental Garden 2, Faculty of Agriculture, Halu Oleo University, from November 2025 to February 2026. This study used a Randomized Block Design (RBD) consisting of four levels: Nitrogen 95.2 g, Potassium chloride as 47.6 g, SP-36 119 g plot-1 (P0 = control), LOF 60 mL L-1 water (P1), LOF 100 mL L-1 water (P2), and LOF 140 mL L-1 water (P3). Each treatment was replicated four times, resulting in 16 experimental units. The observation variables in this study were plant height, number of leaves, stem diameter, number of branches, total leaf area, and flowering age. Observational data were analyzed using analysis of variance (ANOVA), followed by an Honestly Significant Difference Test (HSDT) at a 95% confidence level. The results showed that the application of liquid organic fertilizer (LOF) significantly affected plant height, number of leaves at 28 and 35 days after transplanting (DAT), stem diameter at 21 and 35 DAT, and number of branches at 35 DAT. The LOF treatment with 140 mL L-1 water (P3) had the best effect on plant height, number of leaves at 28 and 35 DAT, stem diameter at 21 and 35 DAT, and number of branches at 35 DAT.