The effects of synthetic fertilizer and whey protein concentrate application on pepper plant's (Capsicum annuum L.) yield and growth

One of the strategies devised to address the nutritional difficulties caused by the world's increasing population is to boost productivity per unit area to expose plant potential. Because of the negative impacts of synthetic fertilizers on nature, it is critical to design environmentally friendly plant nutrition models. One of these is proteins that are obtained naturally. A study was conducted to study and compare the effects of synthetic fertilizer and whey protein concentrate on the growth and yield of pepper plants (Capsicum annuum L. cv. Mazamort)-. The experimental factors were synthetic fertilizer (SF) and whey protein concentrate (WPC). The plants treated with 5.0 and 7.5 g of WPC had the maximum plant height, widest crown length, number of branches per plant, stem diameter, leaf chlorophyll content, and leaf fresh weight. Leaf turgid weight, average number of leaves, leaf dry weight, plant total height, and crown length were all highest in plants treated with 5.0 g/application of WPC. Plants treated with 2.5 g/application WPC had the biggest leaf area. The 2.5 g/application WPC-treated plants had the highest average fruit weight and fruit number, indicating that this application had the earliest flowering time. The highest fruit diameter and fruit length were obtained from the control group. While 5.0 g/application WPC-treated plants had the highest flower bud count, fruit number, and fastest fruit ripening time, 7.5 g/application WPC-treated plants had the highest fertilized flower count. Fruit maturation was earlier in WPC-treated plants compared to SF-treated ones; while 2.5 g/application SF and 7.5 g/application WPC-treated plants had the earliest fruiting time.