Prospects of using leguminous green manuring crop Sesbania rostrata for supplementing fertilizer nitrogen in rice production and control of environmental pollution

Abstract

Modern rice cultivation relies on chemical nitrogen (N) fertilizer that ultimately degrades soil health and creates environmental pollution. The increasing concerns about environmental pollution, restoring soil health, and conservation of energy, public attention is now towards green manures as supplement for N fertilizer. Sesbania rostrata is a popular leguminous green manuring crop that fixes atmospheric N₂, improves soil health, and rice productivity through incorporation of its biomass in to soil. About 40–60 days plants provide 5–6 tons dry biomass that can supplement 50–100% N requirement. In world, it is adapted as pre-rice or post-rice green manuring crop. Long-term use of S. rostrata improves soil health and increased rice yield by 9–11% over chemical fertilizer. Use of S. rostrata in large scale for rice production can reduce environmental pollution problems as it can cut down chemical N requirement and thus reduction dispersal of Nr to the environment.

Keywords:

• atmosphere
• biological N2 fixation
• fertilizer
• leguminous crops
• rice cultivation
• soil health