Organic tomatoes, the Exquisite way

Tomatoes need not be fed with so much fertilizers and chemicals to make them look luscious and marketable. A recent study by the Philippine Council for Agricultural Resource Research and Development in UP Los Banos indicates that tomatoes grown without chemical fertilizers have better yields than the chemical-laden tomatoes.

The study titled "Performance of tomato applied with Exquisite soil conditioner and bio organic fertilizer" by Jesusa Ortuoste (PhD), R. Marcelino and R. Ejercito states that tomato plants applied with Exquisite BD soil conditioner and Exquisite bio organic fertilizer exhibited resistance to pest and diseases; had no significant difference in height (whether the Exquisite products were applied singly or in combination); and yielded far better than those treated with chemical fertilizers.

"In fact, the yield was significantly double from tomato plants applied with a combination of Exquisite soil conditioner and bio organic fertilizer at 10,766.65 kilos per hectare," the study noted.

"Untreated tomato plants (those that did not use Exquisite products) incurred the highest production cost with P22,000 per hectare. The cost of using a combination of Exquisite soil conditioner and bio organic fertilizer was at P14,550 while the cost of using soil conditioner alone was at P13,950 and bio organic fertilizer alone was at P12,600," the researchers stated.

In terms of gross income, tomato plants treated with a combination of Exquisite soil conditioner and bio organic fertilizer was at P119,617.48 per hectare; followed by the single application of the Exquisite products at P72,214.89 (soil conditioner alone) and P78,880.898 (for bio organic fertilizer alone), the study said, adding that the return on investment using the combination of Exquisite product was at 716.55 percent followed by single use of soil conditioner with 456.64 percent and 452.66 percent for bio organic fertilizer.

"The lowest gross income was obtained in untreated tomato plant (those not applied with Exquisite BD products) at P58,882.89 and an ROI of 167.65 percent," the study said.

"The treated plants grow faster because the beneficial microorganisms also digest the plant nutrients in the soil so that they are more readily absorbed by the roots of the plants," the researchers said.

The bio organic fertilizers are preparations containing live or latent cells efficient strains of Nitrogen fixing, phosphate solubilizing or cellulating organisms and accelerating those microbial processes which augment the availability of nutrients that can be assimilated by plants and are absolutely pollution-free, they added.

The study recommended the use of Exquisite soil conditioner and bio organic fertilizer in areas suitable to growing tomato like Luzon, particularly Baguio and Mindanao which are endowed with fertilizer volcanic soil.

The study noted that since tomato grown with Exquisite are organic and free from pesticide residue, they have more vitamin C and can be eaten raw just like fruits as what other countries are doing.

"Using organic fertilizer also increases the farmers’ incomes since it lessens the production costs. It also has beneficial effects acting as a soil amendment that loosens and facilitates aeration. By preserving and taking care of the soil through the use of organic fertilizer, the future generation can also benefit from and enjoy the bountiful natural resources," the study said.

The long term benefits of using organic fertilizer include: preserving and enhancing topsoil; increasing the chances that future generation can continue growing food; help preserving aquatic life by minimizing the flow of toxic pesticides into streams, rivers and lakes; and encouraging healthy populations of beneficial insects that keep destructive insects under control.

"Most of all, the environmental benefits represent long term savings, not just for the farmers/consumers but also for future generations," the study stressed.