Journal of Scientific Research and Reports

Aims: To evaluate a complete farmer-managed natural farming (NF) package relative to a recommended-dose-of-fertilizer (RDF)-based comparison treatment in tomato, with an emphasis on short-term soil properties, crop performance, pest and disease incidence, and farm economics under acidic red-lateritic conditions.

Study Design: A randomized paired farmer-field design was used. Ten farmer fields served as blocks, and each field contained one NF plot and one RDF-based comparison plot. Treatment was evaluated within the paired field structure.

Place and Duration of Study: The trial was conducted during the 2025 kharif season in Bankura district, West Bengal, India, on acidic red-lateritic soils.

Methodology: The NF package comprised beejamrit, jeevamrit, ghanajeevamrit, locally adapted botanical crop-protection formulations, and mulching. The comparison treatment received the recommended N:P₂O₅:K₂O dose, while farmyard manure, irrigation, staking, and sanitation were common to both treatments. Soil properties, crop growth and yield attributes, pest and disease incidence, and economic indicators were recorded. Crop growth and yield were evaluated using the paired farmer-field/block structure; pest and disease percentages and economic indicators are presented descriptively.

Results: Within the NF treatment, post-harvest soil pH, soil organic carbon, available nitrogen and available phosphorus were 5.86 ± 0.04, 0.457 ± 0.017%, 221.38 ± 5.69 kg ha^-1, and 19.83 ± 0.95 kg ha^-1, respectively. Growth and yield attributes did not differ significantly (P > .05) between NF and the RDF-based comparison treatment; plot-wise marketable yields were 42.63 ± 1.21 and 44.18 ± 1.27 t ha^-1, respectively. Observed early blight, late blight, and fruit borer incidence values were numerically lower under NF (12.2%, 8.1%, and 8.3%) than under RDF (18.4%, 12.6%, and 15.2%). NF also had a lower recorded cultivation cost (₹84,913.65 ha^-1 vs. ₹129,684.25 ha^-1), with a higher descriptive net return (₹85,614.75 ha^-1 vs. ₹47,050.55 ha^-1) and B:C (2.01 vs. 1.36).

Conclusion: Under the conditions of this single-season, ten-field study, no statistically significant difference in marketable tomato yield was detected between the integrated NF package and the RDF-based treatment. Within the NF treatment, selected soil indicators showed favourable within-season changes, while pest and disease incidence values were numerically lower and recorded cultivation cost was lower than under the RDF-based treatment. Because pest and disease outcomes and economic comparisons are descriptive, and because the NF treatment was evaluated as an integrated package, the findings should be interpreted as context-specific evidence that warrants multi-season and multi-location validation.