MIC319

BIOFERTILIZER
By
Siti Norazura Jamal
 Objective
• Identify the basic concept in biofertilizer
 Introduction
• In the last century, chemical fertilizers were
used in agriculture. Farmers were happy of
getting increased yield in agriculture in the
beginning.
• But slowly chemical fertilizers started
displaying their ill-effects such as:
 Leaching out
 Polluting water basins
 Destroying micro-organisms and friendly insects
 Making the crop more susceptible to the attack of diseases
 Reducing the soil fertility and thus causing irreparable damage to the
overall system
 Solution
• A number of intellectuals throughout the
world started working on the alternatives
• Found that biofertilizers can help increasing
the yield without causing the damage
associated with chemical fertilizers.
BIOFERTILIZERS
 What is bio fertilizers?
• Is a large population of a specific or a group of
beneficial microorganisms for enhancing the
productivity of soil.
• Either by fixing atmospheric nitrogen or by
solubilizing soil phosphorus or by stimulating plant
growth through synthesis of growth promoting
substance.
• Bio fertilizers based on renewable energy source are
cost effective, eco friendly and can help to
economize on the high investment needed for
chemical fertilizer
 Benefits from using bio fertilizers
•Increase crop yield by 20-30%.
• Replace chemical nitrogen and phosphorus by 25%.
• Stimulate plant growth.
• Activate the soil biologically.
• Restore natural soil fertility.
• Provide protection against drought and some soil
borne diseases.
 The advantages of bio-fertilizers
1.Cost effective.
2. Supplements to fertilizers.
3. Eco-friendly (Friendly with nature).
4. Reduces the costs towards fertilizers use,
especially regarding nitrogen and phosphorus.
 Types of Biofertilizer
1) For nitrogen
- Rhizobium for legumes crops
- Azotobacter/ Azospirilium for non legume crops
- Acetobacter for sugarcane only.
- Blue –Green Algae (BGA) and Azolla for low land paddy.
2) For phosphorus
- Phosphate solubilizing Bacteria (PSB) for all crops to be applied with
Rhizobium,
Azotobacter, Azospirilium and Acetobacter
3) For enriched compost
- Phosphate solubilizing Bacteria (PSB) and Azatobacter culture
- Cellulolytic fungal culture
• Phospo: it release insoluble phosphorus in soil and fix this
phosphorus in clay minerals which is of great significance in
agriculture.
• Rhizo: bacterial plays a very important role in agriculture by
inducing nitrogen fixings nodules on the root of legumes such
as peas and alfafa.
• Azotobacter: fixes the atmospheric nitrogen in the soil and
make it available to the plants. It protects the root from other
pathogens present in the soil.
• Trichoderma: it is a non pathogenic and eco-friendly product.
The product is antagonistic hyper parasitic against different
pathogens in the field and economically well established
biocontrol agent.
Azospirilium Rhizobium
Phosphobacteria Azotobacter
• Composter: composter breaks down any OM such as dead
plants from yard waste, thereby increasing the soil
productivity.
• Tricho-Card: Trichogramma is an efficient destroyer of eggs of
many leaf and flower eaters, stems, fruit, shoot. It can be
used in a variety of crops such as sugarcane, corn, vegetables,
paddy and apple.
• Vermi Compost: it is 100% pure eco-friendly organic fertilizer.
Has nitrogen phosphorus, potassium, organic carbon, sulphur,
hormones, vitamins, enzymes and antibiotics which helps to
improve the quality and quantity of yield.
BIOCOMPOST
 BIOCOMPOST
• Eco friendly organic fertilizer
• Prepared from the sugar industry waste material which is
decomposed and enriched of varios plants and human
friendly bacteria and fungi.
• Consists of nitrogen, phosphate solubilizing bacteria and
various useful fungi like decomposing fungi, trichoderma
viridea which protects the plants from various soil borne
disease.
• Increase soil fertility which results to a good quality products
to the farmers.
 COMPOST
• The aerobically decomposed remnants of OM. Used in
landscaping, agriculture as a soil conditioner and fertilizer.
• Useful for erosion control, wetland construction, and as
landfill cover.
• Compost serves as a growing medium, or a porous, absorbent
material that holds moisture and soluble minerals, providing
the support and nutrients.
• To maximize plant growth, it is sometimes necessary to:
 Dilute with soil or peat to reduce salinity or to add
neutralizers (pH closer to 7).
 Additional nutrients like fertilizers or manure, and materials
to improve drainage and aeration, (sand or clay granules).
 COMPOST TYPES
• There are different ways to compost, starting with
layers of ‘brown’ and ‘green’ biodegradable waste
mixed with garden soil.
 ‘Brown’ waste- old straw, tough vegetable stems.
 ‘Green’ waste- biodegradable waste that breaks
down faster, such as fruit and cut flowers.
 There is also Vermicomposting, which uses worms to
help break down the organic waste.
 BOKASHI
• Bokashi (Japanese for “fermented organic matter”) is a
method of intensive composting.
• Commonly made with only molasses, water, EM, and wheat
bran.
• Can be made by inoculating any organic matter with a variety
of hosts of beneficial bacteria/microbes
• This includes manures, spent mushroom compost, mushroom
spores, forest soil tea, yeast, pickles, wine and beer.
• Molasses feeds the microbial cultures as they inoculate the
organic matter.
EFFECTIVE MICROORGANISM
 INDIGENOUS MICROORGANISM
• In ecology, an indigenous species is an
organism which is native to a given region or
ecosystem.
• Contrast with introduced species (naturalized
or exotic species) which is an organism that is
not indigenous to a given place, but has been
transported there as a result of human
activity.
• Lactobacillus culture.
 BACKGROUND OF EM
TECHNOLOGY
• Developed by Prof. Higa in 1982.
• Was used in agriculture and environment
field.
• Thereafter EM has been for animal husbandly,
industry human welfare, education,
construction and medical field.
 WHAT IS EM?
• Complex microorganism solution.
• It contains mainly 3 species such as Lactic acid
bacteria, Yeast, Phototrophic Bacteria.
• Collected from food industries and nature.
• All microorganisms in EM are non genetic
bacteria.
 Types of EM
• Lactic acid bacteria: Lactobacillus plantarum;
L.casei, Streptococcus lactis
• Photosynthetic bacteria: Rhodopseudomonas
palustris, Rhodobacter sphaeroides.
• Yeast: Saccharomyces cerevisiae; Candida
utilis
• Actinomycetes: Streptomyces albus; S. griseus
• Fermenting fungi: Aspergillus oryzae; Mucor
hiemalis
Lactic acid bacteria
Yeast
 BENEFICIAL INFLUENCE OF EM IN
AGRICULTURE
• Promotes germination, flowering, fruiting and ripening in
plants.
• Improves physical, chemical and biological environments of
the soil and suppresses soil borne pathogens and pests.
• Enhances the photosynthetic capacity of crops.
• Ensure better germination and plant establishment
• Increases the efficacy of OM as fertilizers.
• Develops resistance of plants to pests and disease.