ISSN 1023-1072 Pak. J. Agri., Agril. Engg., Vet. Sci., 2013, 29 (1): 56-69 FERTILIZER, FERMENTED ACTIVATORS, AND EM ® UTILIZATION IN PECHAY (BRASSICA PEKINENSIS L.) PRODUCTION 1 Pet. R. L. Pascual, 1 A. D. Jarwar 2 and P. S. Nitural 3 1 Cebu Technological University (CTU) – Barili Campus, Barili, Cebu, Philippines 2 Rice Research Station, Thatta Sindh, Pakistan 3 Central Luzon State University (CLSU), Science City of Muňoz, Nueva Ecija, Philippines ABSTRACT The study was conducted at the experimental area of Cebu Technological University (CTU) – Barili Campus, Barili, Cebu, Philippines during the year 2011, to evaluate the effect of using different fertilizers, fermented activators, and effective microorganisms (E.M. ) on the yield, root and shoot fresh and dry weight of pechay (Brassica pekinensis L.) and their short term effect on the nutrient content and pH of the soil. The experiment was laidout in a two-factorial arranged of the treatments in Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with three replications. Experiment comprises of the treatments as: Factor A – Fertilizer = F0 – Control (no fertilizer), F1 – Formulated Compost Fertilizer (30% Browns + 30% Greens + 40% Banana Bract at 2kg/m 2 with 1.91% N - 0.52% P2O5 – 0.48% K2O), F2 - Commercial Compost Fertilizer (Vermi-Compost of Cebu Provincial Agriculture Office at 2kg/m 2 with 1.84% N - 1.78% P2O5 – 0.17% K2O), F3 – Inorganic Fertilizer (14-14-14 – 0.06kg/m 2 ) and Factor B – Fermented Activators and EM= E0 – Control (tap water), E1 – CGSAA alone (at 5L/m 2 two times a week), E2 – FSCJ alone (at 5L/m 2 two times a week), E3 – 1 Part CGSAA + 1 Part FSCJ (at 5L/m 2 two times a week), E4 – Commercial E.M. (BIOEM at 5L/m 2 two times a week). Results revealed that at harvest, pechay leaf length increased by 1.77 times (21.49 cm), number of leaves by 0.78 times (9.26), leaf area by 18.02 times (831.93cm 3 ) and computed marketable yield by 32.96 times (9.17 t ha -1 ) when fertilized with commercial compost fertilizer and applied with commercial EM than those unfertilized pechay without fermented activators application. Furthermore, commercial EM along with commercial compost fertilizer increased the shoot fresh weight of pechay. On shoot dry weight and root fresh and dry weight, compost fertilizer application alone is already enough. Conclusively, for pechay (Brassica pekinensis L.) commercial production, the use of commercial compost fertilizer together with commercial effective microorganism is recommended for higher growth and yield. Keywords: Fertilizer, Fermented activators, EM ® , pechay (Brassica pekinensis L.). INTRODUCTION Pechay (Brassica pekinensis L) is a major vegetable crop, is rich in vitamin C and contains significant amounts of nitrogen compounds known as indoles, as well as fiber - both of which appear to lower the risk of various forms of cancer (Murray, 2005). However, in order to produce high yield, most growers use synthetically-based products, thus, the possibility of pesticides and chemical residue accumulation is very serious that poses threat to human health. According to Mendoza (2004), the main expenditure in a conventional farm in agrochemical inputs is 65% for fertilizer and 18.2% for pesticides. Considering the growth habit of crucifers, using organic fertilizer alone may be proved to be disadvantageous since organic fertilizer creates a slow-release situation of providing nutrients to the soil to be absorbed and used by plants for their growth and development over a longer period of time. Thus, other than using compost alone, additional known effects of fermented activators such as promotion of growth must be considered to make it at least at par with synthetically-based products. Corresponding author: petroey262301@yahoo.com