An original and efficient fertilizer for cherry tomato plants grown in urban agriculture: Feral pigeon guano

Abstract Recently, urban agriculture has spread rapidly in occidental cities taking the form of plant cultivation on the rooftops of urban buildings. In this context, it would be interesting to use a natural fertilizer present in cities like the pigeon (Columba livia) guano. In this study, we tested...

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Main Authors: Chloé Duffaut, Florence Brondeau, Julien Gasparini
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2023-01-01
Series:Urban Agriculture & Regional Food Systems
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1002/uar2.20046
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author Chloé Duffaut
Florence Brondeau
Julien Gasparini
author_facet Chloé Duffaut
Florence Brondeau
Julien Gasparini
author_sort Chloé Duffaut
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Recently, urban agriculture has spread rapidly in occidental cities taking the form of plant cultivation on the rooftops of urban buildings. In this context, it would be interesting to use a natural fertilizer present in cities like the pigeon (Columba livia) guano. In this study, we tested the effects of pigeon guano on the cherry tomato plant in an urban environment. On a rooftop at Ivry‐sur‐Seine (near Paris, France), we set up 30 cultivation bags (58.9 L volume) with two cherry tomato plants in each bag. In June 2017, we added about 15 g of pigeon guano in 1.5 L of water to each of the 15 “guano” bags and 1.5 L of water to each of the 15 “control” bags. After 15 days, we observed that the tomato plants were higher and tend to have more flowers in the guano treatment than in the control group. Finally, regarding the total number of cherry tomatoes harvested (total mass and number), it was around one to two times higher in the guano treatment than in the control. However, the average mass per fruit was not affected by the treatment. Overall, we showed that pigeon guano is an efficient local fertilizer for cherry tomato plants in urban areas.
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spelling doaj.art-824f78f605d44d019193548746b44dac2023-12-28T12:02:33ZengWileyUrban Agriculture & Regional Food Systems2575-12202023-01-0181n/an/a10.1002/uar2.20046An original and efficient fertilizer for cherry tomato plants grown in urban agriculture: Feral pigeon guanoChloé Duffaut0Florence Brondeau1Julien Gasparini2Institut d'Ecologie et des Sciences de l'Environnement de ParisSorbonne Université, UPEC, Paris 7, CNRS, INRA, IRDParisFranceFaculté des Lettres, laboratoire Espaces, Nature et Cultures, ENeC FRE 2026, Espaces, Nature et Culture Sorbonne Université Paris FranceInstitut d'Ecologie et des Sciences de l'Environnement de ParisSorbonne Université, UPEC, Paris 7, CNRS, INRA, IRDParisFranceAbstract Recently, urban agriculture has spread rapidly in occidental cities taking the form of plant cultivation on the rooftops of urban buildings. In this context, it would be interesting to use a natural fertilizer present in cities like the pigeon (Columba livia) guano. In this study, we tested the effects of pigeon guano on the cherry tomato plant in an urban environment. On a rooftop at Ivry‐sur‐Seine (near Paris, France), we set up 30 cultivation bags (58.9 L volume) with two cherry tomato plants in each bag. In June 2017, we added about 15 g of pigeon guano in 1.5 L of water to each of the 15 “guano” bags and 1.5 L of water to each of the 15 “control” bags. After 15 days, we observed that the tomato plants were higher and tend to have more flowers in the guano treatment than in the control group. Finally, regarding the total number of cherry tomatoes harvested (total mass and number), it was around one to two times higher in the guano treatment than in the control. However, the average mass per fruit was not affected by the treatment. Overall, we showed that pigeon guano is an efficient local fertilizer for cherry tomato plants in urban areas.https://doi.org/10.1002/uar2.20046
spellingShingle Chloé Duffaut
Florence Brondeau
Julien Gasparini
An original and efficient fertilizer for cherry tomato plants grown in urban agriculture: Feral pigeon guano
Urban Agriculture & Regional Food Systems
title An original and efficient fertilizer for cherry tomato plants grown in urban agriculture: Feral pigeon guano
title_full An original and efficient fertilizer for cherry tomato plants grown in urban agriculture: Feral pigeon guano
title_fullStr An original and efficient fertilizer for cherry tomato plants grown in urban agriculture: Feral pigeon guano
title_full_unstemmed An original and efficient fertilizer for cherry tomato plants grown in urban agriculture: Feral pigeon guano
title_short An original and efficient fertilizer for cherry tomato plants grown in urban agriculture: Feral pigeon guano
title_sort original and efficient fertilizer for cherry tomato plants grown in urban agriculture feral pigeon guano
url https://doi.org/10.1002/uar2.20046
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