International Journal of Horticulture, 2025, Vol.15, No.4, 143-161 http://hortherbpublisher.com/index.php/ijh 160 for improving plant development. The findings emphasize the importance of integrating organic components like vermicompost, cocopeat, and FYM in seedling production to promote healthier and more vigorous growth, ultimately enhancing productivity in Capsicum cultivation. This study supports the use of organic amendments for sustainable vegetable farming. Authors’ contributions Prabin Sapkota, Rupesh Kumar Mehta, Chetana Roy, Abhishek Baniya: writing the article, creating the experimental setup, Literature research and statistical calculations of the data, performing the experiments, interpretation of the findings, literature research, and obtaining the necessary materials for the experiment. Jibisha Poudel, Sakshi Mandal, Arzu Chaudhary, Megha Upadhyay, Shafat Rukhsar, Lokesh Pokharel: interpretation of the findings, literature research, and obtaining the necessary materials for the experiment. All authors read and approved the final manuscript. Acknowledgments We express our sincere gratitude to G.P. Koirala College of Agriculture and Research Center for providing the necessary academic support and research facilities. We extend our heartfelt appreciation to the Prime Minister Agricultural Modernization Project for offering a platform to conduct this study. Their support was instrumental in the successful completion of this research. Our deepest thanks go to our advisors, faculty members, and fellow researchers for their invaluable guidance and constructive feedback throughout the study. Conflict of Interest Disclosure The authors affirm that this research was conducted without any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest. Reference Abad M., Noguera P., Puchades R., Maquieira A., and Noguera V., 2002, Physico-chemical and chemical properties of some coconut coir dusts for use as a peat substitute for containerised ornamental plants, Bioresource Technology, 82(3): 241-245. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0960-8524(01)00189-4 Agarwal A., Gupta S., and Ahmed Z., 2007, Influence of plant densities on productivity of bell pepper (Capsicum annuumL.) under greenhouse in high altitude cold desert of Ladakh, International Symposium on Medicinal and Nutraceutical Plants, 756: 309-314. https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.2007.756.32 Angrej Ali A.A., Peer F.A., and Dar K.R., 2010, Growing media affects germination and seedling growth of peruvian ground cherry (Physalis peruviana L.), Journal of Agricultural Technology, 5(2): 233-235. https://www.cabidigitallibrary.org/doi/full/10.5555/20113030843 Arancon N.Q., Edwards C.A., Bierman P., Metzger J.D., Lee S., and Welch C., 2012, The influence of vermicompost applications to strawberries: Part 1. Effects on growth and yield, Bioresource Technology, 93(2): 145-153. Arancon N.Q., Pant A., Radovich T., Hue N.V., Potter J.K., and Converse C.E., 2012, Seed germination and seedling growth of tomato and lettuce as affected by vermicompost water extracts (teas), HortScience, 47(12): 1722-1728. https://doi.org/10.21273/HORTSCI.47.12.1722 Araujo A.S.F., Leite L.F.C., Santos V.B., and Carneiro R.F.V., 2012, Soil microbial biomass and activity in different organic amendments, Applied Soil Ecology, 60: 254-259. Awang Y., Shaharom A.S., Mohamad R.B., and Selamat A., 2009, Chemical and physical characteristics of cocopeat-based media mixtures and their effects on the growth and development of Celosia cristata, American Journal of Agricultural and Biological Sciences, 4(1): 63-71. https://www.cabidigitallibrary.org/doi/full/10.5555/20093146378 Behera S., 2016, A study on the effect of hormonal priming (GA3) on seed quality parameters of solanaceous vegetables, Available at SSRN 2835344. http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2835344 Bhardwaj R.L., 2013, Effect of growing media on seed germination and seedling growth of papaya cv. “Red lady”, Indian Journal of Agricultural Research, 47(2): 163-168. https://doi.org/10.5897/ajps11.265 Bhusal K., Bhusal P., Acharya N., Chapai D.P., and Shrestha J., 2023, Effect of varieties and pinching days on growth and yield attributes of African marigold (Tagetes erecta L.), Nepal Agriculture Research Journal, 15(1): 98-105. https://doi.org/10.3126/narj.v15i1.51505 Bosland P.W., Coon D., and Reeves G., 2012, ‘Trinidad Moruga Scorpion’ pepper is the world’s hottest measured chile pepper at more than two million scoville heat units, HortTechnology, 22(4): 534-538. https://doi.org/10.21273/horttech.22.4.534 Demir H., Polat E., Sönmez İ.L.K.E.R., and Yılmaz E., 2010, Effects of different growing media on seedling quality and nutrient contents in pepper (Capsicum annuumL. var longumcv. Super Umut F1), Journal of Food, Agriculture & Environment, 8(3&4): 894-897.
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