Effect of Integration of Azolla pinnata and Azolla Compost as an Approach for Enhancing Productivity and Nutrient Uptake of Oryza sativa L.

The extensive use of synthetic fertilizers has harmful effects on soil organic matter content, soil health, environmental safety and human health. To overcome the previous problems, various types of organic amendments used in this study to improve soil conditions and crop productivity. The research study comprised of pots experiment carried out at the Soil and Water Department, faculty of Agriculture, Tanta University, Egypt during 2021 summer season to study the effect of two forms of azolla: green azolla (Azolla pinnata) as a biofertilizer and azolla compost as a soil amendment under different levels of nitrogen fertilizer on the growth of rice crop and some soil chemical properties. To achieve the goals of this study, soil samples was collected from Kafr El Zayat , Gharbia Governorate. Thirteen treatments were applied i.e. T1: Control (without any applications), T2: NPK fertilizer (Recommended dose), T3: 100%NPK+5 Mg ha-1 green azolla, T4: 100%NPK+10 Mg ha-1 green azolla, T5: 100%NPK +7 Mg ha-1 azolla compost, T6: 100%NPK +10 Mg ha-1 azolla compost, T7: 100%NPK +14 Mg ha-1 azolla compost,T8: 50%N +PK +5 Mg ha-1 green azolla, T9: 50%N+PK+10 Mg ha-1 green azolla, T10: 50%N+PK+7 Mg ha-1 azolla compost, T11:50%N+PK+10 Mg ha-1 azolla compost, T12:50%N+PK+14 Mg ha-1 azolla compost, T13:100%NPK +5 Mg ha-1 green azolla+7 Mg ha-1 azolla compost. The results showed that applications of green azolla and azolla compost significantly improved the grain production of rice, increased cation exchange capacity (CEC), % of organic matter (OM), available and total NPK, and inhibited the pH from rising.