Mitigation of Cigarette Filter Residue Toxicity in Maize Through Organic Amendments Under Controlled Soil Conditions

Cigarette filter residues are emerging soil pollutants that may adversely affect crop growth and soil health due to the release of toxic compounds and non-biodegradable materials. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of cigarette filter residues and organic amendments on the growth, yield, and toxicity mitigation potential in maize (Zea mays L.) grown under contaminated soil conditions. A pot experiment was carried out at PMAS-Arid Agriculture University using a Completely Randomized Design (CRD) consisting of six treatments with three replications each. The treatments included control (T1), cigarette filters alone (T2), farmyard manure (T3), poultry manure (T4), farmyard manure + cigarette filters (T5), and poultry manure + cigarette filters (T6). Data regarding plant height, stem diameter, number of leaves, shoot and root biomass, total leaf area, leaf area index, and yield parameters were recorded and analyzed statistically value through analysis of variance (ANOVA), and treatment means were compared using the Least Significant Difference (LSD) test at a 5% probability level. The results revealed that organic amendments significantly improved maize growth and yield attributes compared with control and cigarette filter treatment alone. The combined application of poultry manure and cigarette filters (T6) produced the highest plant height (194 cm), total leaf area (5903 cm²), grain yield per plant (141 g), biological yield per plant (267 g), and harvest index (52.8%), representing substantial improvements over the control treatment. Poultry manure performed better than farmyard manure due to its higher nutrient availability and rapid mineralization. The combined application of poultry manure and cigarette filters effectively minimized the negative effects of cigarette filter residues by improving soil fertility, nutrient uptake, and biomass accumulation. These findings demonstrate that organic amendments can serve as an environmentally sustainable strategy for mitigating cigarette filter residue toxicity in agricultural soils. In particular, poultry manure showed strong potential for improving soil quality and enhancing maize productivity, offering a practical waste-management and soil-remediation approach for contaminated environments. These findings were obtained under controlled pot conditions and should be validated through field-based investigations before broader agricultural recommendations are made.