Soil Enhancement for Sustainable Rice (Oryza sativa) Production in Lagos State

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Department of Botany, University of Lagos, Akoka Lagos. Nigeria

Abstract

Cultural compost, a novel approach integrating organic waste  and cultural materials, offers a promising solution for sustainable rice production in Lagos State. Lagos is densely populated with an estimated population of about 20 million people, with a paltry land mass of 3,577 square kilometres. Lagos is sandy in texture and contains very few nutrients for sustainable rice yield. Farmers in Lagos adopt the usage of NPK fertilizer every year for maximum production, and its effect is hazardous to the environment and the farmers. This study was carried out to investigate the impact of cultural compost like the agricultural waste  (watermelon, pineapple and banana), Water hyacinth, Hydrophyte  (Pontedoria crassippens), Epiphyte fern (Nephrolepsis basserrata) and Panicum grass (Panicum titus) on enhancing the growth and productivity of Rice (Oryza sativa.) in Lagos, Nigeria and examining their nutrients composition as it affects the soil fertility, microbial activity and rice development. The results showed significant enhancements in plant biomass, nutrient uptake and yield when cultural compost was applied compared to NPK fertilizers and other conventional manure(cow dung). Results showed that Epiphyte Fern (Nephrolepsis biserrata) when mixed with the soil has the highest nutrient/physico-chemical-composition ofNitrogen (127mg/kg), Phosphorus (578.9mg/kg), potassium (280.06mg/kg), EC (4950mS/cm), C:N(5:1),  TOM(7.88), TOC(1.65%), which effect improve soil fertility, enhanced microbial activity and increase yield. The effect of the cultural compost, especiallyNephrolepsisbiserrata was also observed as it improved the quality of the matured rice grains harvested better than the quality of grains obtained from other compost materials and NPK, including cow dung manure. The research, therefore, established the efficiency of N.biserrata as a better alternative to NPK fertilizer and other conventional fertilizer like cowdung manure. It is environmentally friendly, readily available and cost-effective compared to NPK fertilizer.

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