Red seaweed liquid fertilizer increases growth, chlorophyll and yield of mungbean (Vigna radiata)
¹Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Agricultural University, Department of Agronomy, Gazipur-1706, Bangladesh
²Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Agricultural University, Department of Fisheries Biology & Aquatic Environment, Gazipur-1706, Bangladesh
³Graduate School of Agriculture, Kyoto University, Kitashirakawa, Kyoto 606-8502, Japan
*Corresponding author: mannanagr@bsmrau.edu.bd
Abstract:
The demand for chemical fertilizers in Bangladesh is increasing by the day. Seaweed extracts are high in a variety of bioactive substances that can be used as a biostimulant as an alternative to agricultural plants. To assess the impact of foliar spraying of red seaweed (Gracilaria tenuistipitata var. liui) extracts at 5, 10, 15, 20 and 25% concentrationsin comparison to the control condition (water spray only) and soil application of recommended doses of fertilizer (RDF) as basal on growth, chlorophyll and yield of mungbean variety BU mug5, a pot experiment was conducted at the Department of Agronomy, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Agricultural University (BSMRAU), Gazipur, Bangladesh during Kharif-1 season (March to May 2021). Seven (7) treatments: T1 – Control (foliar spray using water), T2 – Recommended doses of fertilizers (RDF) as basal, T3 – Foliar spray of 5% seaweed extracts, T4 – Foliar spray of 10% seaweed extracts, T5 – Foliar spray of 15% seaweed extracts, T6 – Foliar spray of 20% seaweed extracts and T7 – Foliar spray of 25% seaweed extracts were imposed following completely randomized design (CRD) with three replications. The results revealed that seaweed liquid fertilizer at 20% concentration increased leaf area, total dry matter and chlorophyll (SPAD value) by 25.00, 40.21 and 9.11% over the control and 15.42, 8.27 and 2.08% compared to RDF, respectively. Seed yield increased by 93.14% when compared to a control with 20% seaweed foliar spray, and by 9.04%, when compared to RDF. Foliar application of 20% seaweed liquid fertilizer performed best among the treatments in terms of mungbean growth and yield, according to findings of the experiment. The results of this study suggest that red seaweed extracts from Gracilaria tenuistipitata var. liui may be used as a fertilizer to reduce the chemical fertilizer to boost mungbean yield.
Key words:
bio-stimulant, mungbean, red algae, yield