Tomatoes in Japan are generally cultivated under management systems that
use chemical fertilizers and synthetic chemical pesticides. However, the
continuous use of these fertilizers and pesticides damages the soil environment
and reduces the number of soil microorganisms. Organic farming has a relatively
low environmental impact compared to conventional farming techniques, but
typically has lower and more unstable yields. In this study, we investigated
the effect of organic and chemical fertilizer application on growth, yield, and
quality of small-sized (cherry) tomatoes. Cherry tomatoes were cultivated using
organic and chemical organic fertilizers. Average weight and lateral diameter
were significantly higher under organic fertilizer than under chemical
fertilizer. In addition, shoot dry weight was significantly higher under
organic fertilizer than chemical fertilizer. Lycopene content was significantly
higher under organic fertilizer than chemical fertilizer. The total carbon
(TC), total phosphorus (TP), total potassium (TK), available phosphoric (SP)
and exchangeable potassium (SK) contents, C/N ratio, and pH were significantly
higher under organic fertilizer than chemical fertilizer. Bacterial biomass,
nitrite (NO? 2-N)
oxidation activity, nitrification (N) circulation activity, and phosphoric (P)
circulation were higher under organic fertilizer than chemical fertilizer. From
these results, the study indicates that appropriate controls such as TC, total
nitrogen (TN), and C/N ratio of organic fertilizer increased microbial biomass
and enhanced nutrient circulation such as N circulation activity and P
circulation activity. These results can be used to
improve current organic farming practices and promote soil conservation.
References
[1]
Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (2014) FAOSTAT: Crop Data. http://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#data/QC
[2]
Nukaya, A. (2014) Basics of Vegetable Horticulture, Agricultural Cooperative. 76.
[3]
Duke, J.A. and Ayensu, E.S. (1985) Medicinal Plants of China. Reference Publications, Algonac.
[4]
Sánchez-Moreno, C., Plaza, L., De Ancos, B. and Cano, M.P. (2006) Nutritional Characterisation of Commercial Traditional Pasteurised Tomato Juices: Carotenoids, Vitamin C and Radical-Scavenging Capacity. Food Chemistry, 98, 749-756.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodchem.2005.07.015
[5]
Kucuk, O. (2001) Phase II Randomized Clinical Trial of Lycopene Supplementation before Radical Prostatectomy. Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, 10, 861-868.
[6]
Piccardi, N. and Manissier, P. (2009) Nutrition and Nutritional Supplementation: Impact on Skin Health and Beauty. Dermato-Endocrinology, 1, 271-274.
https://doi.org/10.4161/derm.1.5.9706
[7]
Singh, J.S., Pandey, V.C. and Singh, D.P. (2011) Efficient Soil Microorganisms: A New Dimension for Sustainable Agriculture and Environmental Development. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, 140, 339-353.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2011.01.017
[8]
Easdown, W. and Kalb, T. (2004) Antioxidant Capacities and Daily Antioxidant Intake from Vegetables Consumed in Taiwan. AVRDC Progress Report, Asian Vegetable Research and Development Center, Shanhua.
[9]
FiBL and IFOAM (2017) The World of Organic Agriculture Statistics and Emerging Trends, 2017. Research Institute of Organic Agriculture FiBL and IFOAM-Organics International. http://www.organic-world.net/yearbook/yearbook-2017.html
[10]
Woese, K., Lange, D., Boess, C. and Bogl, K.W. (1997) A Comparison of Organically and Conventionally Grown Foods—Results of a Review of the Relevant Literature. Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture, 74, 281-293.
https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1097-0010(199707)74:3%3C281::AID-JSFA794%3E3.0.CO;2-Z
[11]
Chassy, A.W., Bui, L., Renaud, E.N., Van Horn, M. and Mitchell, A.E. (2006) Three-Year Comparison of the Content of Antioxidant Microconstituents and Several Quality Characteristics in Organic and Conventionally Managed Tomatoes and Bell Peppers. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 54, 8244-8252.
https://doi.org/10.1021/jf060950p
[12]
Mitchell, A.E., Hong, Y.-J., Koh, E., Barrett, D.M., Bryant, D.E., Denison, R.F. and Kaffka, S. (2007) Ten-Year Comparison of the Influence of Organic and Conventional Crop Management Practices on the Content of Flavonoids in Tomatoes. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 55, 6154-6159.
https://doi.org/10.1021/jf070344+
[13]
Vallverdú-Queralt, A., Jáuregui, O., Medina-Remón, A. and Lamuela-Raventos, R.M. (2012) Evaluation of a Method to Characterize the Phenolic Profile of Organic and Conventional Tomatoes. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 60, 3373-3380. https://doi.org/10.1021/jf204702f
[14]
Mader, P., Fliessbach, A., Dubois, D., Gunst, L., Fried, P. and Niggli, U. (2002) Soil Fertility and Biodiversity in Organic Farming. Science, 296, 1694-1697.
https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1071148
[15]
Vallverdú-Queralt, A., Jáuregui, O., Medina-Remón, A. and Lamuela-Raventos, R.M. (2012) Evaluation of a Method to Characterize the Phenolic Profile of Organic and Conventional Tomatoes. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 60, 3373-3380. https://doi.org/10.1021/jf204702f
[16]
De Ponti, T., Rijk, B. and Van Ittersum, M.K. (2012) The Crop Yield Gap between Organic and Conventional Agriculture. Agricultural Systems, 108, 1-9.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agsy.2011.12.004
[17]
Seufert, V., Ramankutty, N. and Foley, J.A. (2012) Comparing the Yields of Organic and Conventional Agriculture. Nature, 485, 229-232.
https://doi.org/10.1038/nature11069
[18]
Singh, J.S., Pandey, V.C. and Singh, D.P. (2011) Efficient Soil Microorganisms: A New Dimension for Sustainable Agriculture and Environmental Development. Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment, 140, 339-353.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2011.01.017
[19]
Chen, M., Xu, P., Zeng, G., Yang, C., Huang, D. and Zhang, J. (2015) Bioremediation of Soils Contaminated with Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons, Petroleum, Pesticides, Chlorophenols and Heavy Metals by Composting: Applications, Microbes and Future Research Needs. Biotechnology Advances, 33, 745-755
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biotechadv.2015.05.003
[20]
Adhikari, D., Perwira, I.Y., Araki, K.S. and Kubo, M. (2016) Stimulation of Soil Microorganisms in Pesticide-Contaminated Soil Using Organic Materials. AIMS Bioengineering, 3, 379-388. https://doi.org/10.3934/bioeng.2016.3.379
[21]
Adhikari, D., Kai, T., Mukai, M., Araki, K.S. and Kubo, M. (2014) A New Proposal for a Soil Fertility Index (SOFIX) for Organic Agriculture and Development of a SOFIX Database for Agricultural Fields. Current Topics in Biotechnology, 8, 81-91.
[22]
Kai, T., Mukai, M., Araki, K.S., Adhikari, D. and Kubo, M. (2015) Physical and Biological Properties of Apple Orchard Soils of Different Productivities. Open Journal of Soil Science, 5, 149-156. https://doi.org/10.4236/ojss.2015.57015
[23]
Kai, T., Mukai, M., Araki, K.S., Adhikari, D. and Kubo, M. (2016) Analysis of Chemical and Biological Soil Properties in Organically and Conventionally Fertilized Apple Orchards. Journal of Agricultural Chemistry and Environment, 5, 92-99. https://doi.org/10.4236/jacen.2016.52010
[24]
Kanagawa Prefecture Agricultural Research Institute (2002) Which Varieties Are Suitable for High Sugar Content in Tomato Cultivation? Kanagawa Prefecture Agricultural Research Institute.
https://www.pref.kanagawa.jp/docs/cf7/cnt/f450010/p582114.html
[25]
Nishio, M. (2017) Organic Agriculture. Nobunkyo, 20-32.
[26]
Ito, H. and Morimoto, S. (2009) Possibility of Nondestructive Measurement of Lycopene in Tomato Using Visible and Near-Infrared Spectroscopy. Illuminating Engineering Society, 93, 510-513.
[27]
Donald Nicholas, D.J. and Nason, A. (1957) Determination of Nitrate and Nitrite. Methods in Enzymology, 3, 981-984.
https://doi.org/10.1016/S0076-6879(57)03489-8
[28]
Murphy, J. and Riley, J.P. (1962) A Modified Single Solution Method for the Determination of Phosphate in Natural Waters. Analytica Chimica Acta, 27, 31-36.
https://doi.org/10.1016/S0003-2670(00)88444-5
[29]
Aoshima, H., Kimura, A., Shibutani, A., Okada, C., Matsumiya, Y. and Kubo, M. (2006) Evaluation of Soil Bacterial Biomass Using Environmental DNA Extracted by Slow-Stirring Method. Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology, 71, 875-880.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s00253-005-0245-x
[30]
Matsuno, T., Horii, S., Sato, T., Matsumiya, Y. and Kubo, M. (2013) Analysis of Nitrification in Agricultural Soil and Improvement of Nitrogen Circulation with Autotrophic Ammonia-Oxidizing Bacteria. Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology, 169, 795-809. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12010-012-0029-6
[31]
Horii, S., Matsuno, T., Tagomori, J., Mukai, M., Adhikari, D. and Kobo, M. (2013) Isolation and Identification of Phytate-Degrading Bacteria and Their Contribution to Phytate Mineralization in Soil. Journal of General and Applied Microbiology, 59, 353-360.
[32]
Kubo, M., Adhikari, D., Araki, S.K., Kubota, K., Shinozaki, A., Matsuda, F., Mitsukoshi, K., Mukai, M. and Watarai, H. (2017) Science of Soil Making. Sibundo Shinkosha Co., Tokyo, 2-185.
