A Comparative Analysis of Biofertilizer (Azolla) and Commercial Fertilizer (Urea) on Rice Performance in a Controlled Environment

Ms. Zareefa Bacchus – Author

Mr. Rameshwar Raghunauth – Editor

Professor Subramanian Gomathinayagam – Supervisor

Dr. Elroy Charles – Supervisor

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  • ABSTRACT
  • Rice production is dependent on nitrogen (N), the most essential yield-limiting nutrient. However, chemical N fertilizers have long-term negative consequences on soil and ecosystem health. The use of the free-floating aquatic fern Azolla as a biofertilizer could be a viable option for increasing rice yield without causing environmental damage. It provides a natural source of many nutrients, particularly nitrogen, increases the soil organic matter, and improves the efficiency of inorganic fertilizers while maintaining a suitable soil pH for rice growth. This present study compares the use of Azolla and urea on rice performance in a controlled environment. Live and healthy Azolla species were collected from ponds, brought to the laboratory for identification, mass multiplied, and used as biofertilizers within a completely randomized experiment to study the growth and yield performance of rice (GRDB 10 variety) in pot culture. Six Treatments (T1- Control, T2- Urea (2.29 g/ft2), T3- Azolla (10 g/ft2), T4- Azolla (20 g/ft2), T5- Urea + Azolla (10 g/ft2) and T6- Urea + Azolla (20 g/ft2) were replicated 6 times in 36 pots. Healthy seeds were sowed and transplanted into pots and growth parameters, such as shoot and root length, number of leaflets, number of panicles, number of tillers, plant wet and dry weight, and yield parameters, such as filled and unfilled grains, and weight of 1000 grains, were assessed from the different treatments. The total chlorophyll, carbohydrate, protein, and nitrogen contents were estimated in all treatments. There were significant increases in plant height, the number of effective tillers, dry biomass, and nitrogen content of rice plants with the use of T6 over that of the other treatments, T1- T4. T5 and T6 performed similarly in almost all parameters except for filled grains and panicle length where T6 outperformed T5. While Azolla alone results were comparable to that of urea alone, Azolla in combination with urea at 20g/ft2 has an immense potential to increase plant productivity and concomitantly soil health and sustainability. Further studies should explore the optimal combination of Azolla and urea and whether the rate of urea can decrease with an increasing rate of Azolla. Keywords: Azolla, Urea, Oryza sativa, Biofertilizer, Nitrogen fixation.
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Published
  • July 17, 2025
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  • Copyright (c) 2025 Zareefa Bacchus, Rameshwar Raghunauth, Subramanian Gomathinayagam and Elroy Charles
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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.