Growth and Yield Response of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) to leaf extracts of Lanatana camara L

Abstract

The tomato is the most important vegetable fruit in Nigeria. Nonetheless, it remains undersupplied because farm yield is limited by climate change, sub-optimal crop management, pest and disease complexes, and insecurity. Plant extracts have been reported to have safe and beneficial effects on crop growth due to their growth regulatory or pesticidal effects. The effects of Lantana camara L. (LC), an invasive weed, on crop growth have not been previously reported in Nigeria. Consequently, this study was undertaken to determine if leaf extracts of LC would have any beneficial effects on the yield of tomatoes. Dried and ground LC leaves were subjected to hydro-distillation and solvent extraction by cold and hot maceration to obtain the essential oil (EO) and methanolic and aqueous extracts, respectively. Tomato plants were potted in 10kg of soil at the crop garden of the Department of Crop Protection and Environmental Biology, University of Ibadan, Nigeria. The following treatments (EO, methanol, and aqueous extracts of LC leaves-8 treatments, including control) were applied to tomato cv, Roma VF by spraying or drenching weekly. The treatments were assigned following a randomised complete block design replicated three times. EO spray significantly enhanced the growth and flowering of tomatoes, resulting in a significantly higher fruit yield compared to other extracts. The top three treatments were EO, aqueous drench, and aqueous spray. They resulted in 1821 g. 1245 g, and 1234 g of fruits/plant, respectively, compared with the control (512 g/plant). Conclusively, LC leaf extracts possess beneficial growth regulating effects that can be exploited for increased production of environmentally safe tomato fruits in Nigeria.