Nishan, M.A, and Sansamma George*
Department of Agronomy, College of Agriculture, Vellayani, Thiruvananthapuram- 695 522, Kerala
Email-nshan.ma@gmail.com
Abstracts : Water cabbage (Limnocharis flava (L.) Buchenau)(Malayalam name: Malamkoovalam / Nagapola), an aquatic invasive alien weed was introduced as an ornamental plant in India. Now it has invaded vast tracts of low lying wetland system in Kerala and has become a serious threat to paddy cultivation. The weed clogs irrigation tanks and drainage channels, resulting in poor drainage. The luxuriant vegetative growth coupled with the fast spreading root systems extract large quantities of nutrient elements from the soil. Sannigrahi et al. (2002) reported that large scale utilization is the only way to control noxious aquatic weeds which require no tillage, fertilizer or nourishment for their proliferation. Non availability of good organic source at cheaper rates is another serious problem faced by farmers interested in organic crop production. Information on quality of the weed biomass as a source of manure would motivate farmers to manage such weeds through utilization. The present study was conducted to assess the possibility of utilizing the luxuriant weed biomass of water cabbage through vermicomposting.
Keywords : Water, cabbage, utilization, fertilizer
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