Efficacy of organic fertilizers to Kalingas purple corn

Introduction

The use of synthetic fertilizer to increase cropproductivity has been widely reported to degrade soilquality, such as the increase in soil acidity and salinity(Hans et al., 2015) and the formation of Al-P(McDowel et al., 2002) cited by (Gerpacio, 2017;Muktamar et al., 2018), as well as a decline ofmicrobial richness (Fang et al., 2012) cited by(Muktamar et al., 2018) and microbial diversity insoil (Coolon et al., 2013) cited by (Muktamar et al.,2018). Organic fertilizer is an alternative to substitutenutrient necessity from synthetic fertilizer.

Republic Act 10068, known as the Philippines'Organic Agriculture Act of 2010, decreed thepromotion and development of organic agriculture tomake organic agriculture a vital contributor to thecountry's growth and development (Gazette, 2010)cited by (SUMAGAYSAY, 2014). It includes allagricultural systems that promote ecologically sound,socially acceptable, economically viable, andtechnically feasible food and fiber production.Organic agriculture dramatically reduces externalinputs by not using chemical fertilizers, pesticides,and pharmaceuticals. Production, distribution, andmarketing of organic fertilizer in the country play avery important role in the successful implementationof organic agriculture programs for food and feed.Organically grown food and feedstuff need certifiedorganic fertilizers to qualify as certified organic foodand feedstuff (Padilla et al., 2017). With thesepremises, this study will be conducted to determinethe productivity of Kalinga's purple corn to differentorganic fertilizers and specifically to evaluate thegrowth and yield of purple corn and its profitability.

Purple corn (Zea mays L.), also known as purple maize,is native to the Andes region of Peru. It has been widelycultivated and consumed throughout the Andean regionof South America, mainly in Peru, Ecuador, Bolivia, andArgentina. It expresses one of the deepest purple shadesfound in the plant kingdom (Lao et al., 2017). Due to itsrichness in purple color, purple corn pigments have longbeen used to color foods and beverages. In SouthAmerica, purple corn extracts are widely applied incoloring homemade desserts and beverages such aschicha morada and mazamorra morada, a popular drinkand dessert prepared from purple corn (FAO 2013) citedby (Lao et al., 2017).

In Kalinga, purple corn is cultivated and conserved,particularly at Balbalan, Pasil, and some parts ofLubuagan; however, due to the introduction ofmodern varieties, these cultivars are gettinggenetically eroded. Most farmers preferred thispurple because of its nutritional contents and itsanthocyanin which has many health benefits. Purplecorn is usually cultivated for three months ofmaturity, which is comparable to hybrid corn.Farmers in this community practice no fertilizerapplication, as the plants depend naturally on thenutrients from the soil. The study guides farmers indetermining the right amount of different organicfertilizers to be applied to purple corn. Moreover,using different organic fertilizers with microbialbased fertilizers is beneficial for corn, rice, and othercrops (Sumagaysay, 2014). Likewise, promisingtechnology had a significant impact on the use of BioN organic fertilizer, increasing farm productivity ofthe farmers. It could help the country's dollar receiveby reducing the cost of imported fertilizers(SUMAGAYSAY, 2014). 

The study was carried out to assess the effect of twoorganic fertilizers combinations on Kalinga's purplecorn on growth and yield character. Organic fertilizershave many beneficial benefits to the soil and the cropitself. To maintain this cultivar as an organicallyproduced organic fertilizers application must besustain to maintain its character as an organic crop.