Aquatic legume makes a good fertilizer source
1989
Anon.
An aquatic legume Sesbania rostrata recently discovered in Africa, can be grown before or between rice or maize crops to bring nitrogen from the air into the field. Sesbania has 5 to 10 times more nodules than most legumes having nitrogen-fixing nodules on its stems as well as its roots. When combined with azolla, it can substitute for about 90 kg of nitrogen fertilizer per hectare. Sesbania can be drilled or broadcast in rice fields soon after harvest. About 25 kg of seeds will plant enough Sesbania to cover a hectare. The crop may require one or two initial irrigations for sprouting and stand establishment. When Sesbania is grown for the first time, the rhizobium bacterium which forms the nodules and fixes atmospheric nitrogen, must be applied usually as a spray. Afterward nodules form spontaneously. Rain seems to help spread the stem nodules. Since Sesbania grows to about 15 meters tall in 45 to 60 days, it can fit between two rice crops at little extra cost to rice farmers. The crop covers a field quickly and can be incorporated into the soil in less than two months. When grown to maturity, it reaches a height of three meters and sets seeds in about four months. Sesbania grown in late March produces the most biomass.
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