A recent study published in Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems highlights how integrating date palm biochar, compost, and compost tea can improve soil quality and tomato performance, offering practical benefits for sustainable crop management that resonate with ASTER’s agroecological goals.
Researchers evaluated several soil amendment treatments under controlled conditions and found that the combined use of biochar, compost, and compost tea produced the most substantial positive effects on soil properties. Key outcomes included increased organic carbon, enhanced nutrient levels, and elevated microbial activity—factors that directly support plant health and productivity.
Tomato plants grown with these amendments showed higher nutrient uptake, greater biomass accumulation, and improved chlorophyll content compared to other treatments, underscoring the potential of organic soil amendments as sustainable alternatives to synthetic fertilizers.
For ASTER, these findings point toward scalable agroecological practices that enhance soil fertility while reducing reliance on chemical inputs. Such integrated organic amendments can strengthen crop resilience, support soil biodiversity, and contribute to more sustainable tomato production systems in Mediterranean agroecosystems.
