The Influence of Npk 15:15:15 Fertilizer Rates in the Production of Tomato (lycopersicum Esculentum L.) in Delta State, Nigeria

The field experiment was conducted in two locations (Abraka and Asaba), Delta State to evaluate the response of tomato growth and yield to different rates of NPK15:15:15 within August and November, 2016. The fertilizer was applied at 0, 200, 300 and 400 kg ha-1 and replicated three times. Plant height (cm), number of leaves, leaf area (cm2 ), stem girth (cm), number of fruit and fruits yield (t ha-1 ) were measured. The data were analysed with analysis of variance and means separated with Duncan Multiple Range Test at 5% level of probability. Results indicated that all the NPK15:15:15 fertilizer rates significantly increased the growth and yield of tomato over the control in both locations. Application of 400 kg ha-1 significantly produced the tallest plant (66.8 and 91.0 cm), number of leaves (54.3 and 61.8), number of fruits (22.2 and 20.2) and fruit yield (33.1 and 31.7 t ha-1 ) in Abraka and Asaba, respectively.