Impact of Seaweed Biostimulant on Growth and Productivity of Indigenous Rice Grown in Indian Sundarbans

NABANITA DAS; CHANDAN DE; TAKBIR ALI; SAIKAT DEY; SUKAMAL SARKAR; RAJIB KUNDU; KOUSHIK BRAHMACHARI

doi:10.54894/JISCAR.44.1.2026.177007

Authors

NABANITA DAS Department of Agronomy, Faculty of Agriculture, Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Mohanpur, Nadia - 741 252, West Bengal, India
CHANDAN DE Department of Agronomy, Faculty of Agriculture, Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Mohanpur, Nadia - 741 252, West Bengal, India
TAKBIR ALI Department of Agronomy, Faculty of Agriculture, Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Mohanpur, Nadia - 741 252, West Bengal, India
SAIKAT DEY Division of Agronomy, School of Agriculture and Rural Development, Ramakrishna Mission Vivekananda Educational and Research Institute, Narendrapur, Kolkata -700 103, West Bengal, India
SUKAMAL SARKAR Division of Agronomy, School of Agriculture and Rural Development, Ramakrishna Mission Vivekananda Educational and Research Institute, Narendrapur, Kolkata -700 103, West Bengal, India
RAJIB KUNDU Department of Agronomy, Faculty of Agriculture, Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Mohanpur, Nadia - 741 252, West Bengal, India
KOUSHIK BRAHMACHARI Department of Agronomy, Faculty of Agriculture, Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Mohanpur, Nadia - 741 252, West Bengal, India

https://doi.org/10.54894/JISCAR.44.1.2026.177007

Keywords:

Biostimulants, Coastal saline soil, Indian Sundarbans, Indigenous rice, Seaweed extracts

Abstract

Soil salinity is a major constraint limiting rice productivity in the coastal agroecosystems of the Indian Sundarbans. The use of natural biostimulants such as seaweed extracts has emerged as a sustainable approach to enhance crop growth as well as stress tolerance under such adverse conditions. A field experiment was conducted during the Kharif 2022 and 2023 at Rangabelia, West Bengal to assess the effects of seaweed saps on the growth, yield, quality, nutrient uptake and economics of the rice variety, ‘Dudheshwar’. Seven treatments, comprising RDF- alone and RDF with foliar application of Sagarika and Sargassum extracts (2.5%, 5% and 10%), were evaluated in a randomized block design. Foliar application of seaweed extracts significantly (p<0.05) improved plant height, tiller density, leaf area index and dry matter accumulation when compared with RDF alone. Among the treatments, application of 10% Sargassum extract recorded the highest growth attributes and yield components, resulting in the maximum grain yield (4.51 t ha^-1). Seaweed treatments also enhanced grain quality parameters, particularly hulling and milling percentages, while kernel dimensions remained largely unaffected. Nutrient uptake of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium increased progressively (increased by up to 41.69, 51.76 and 31.18%, respectively over control) with increasing concentrations of seaweed extracts. Economic analysis revealed higher gross and net returns with such sap application, while the highest benefit - cost ratio was obtained under the application of 5% Sargassum sap. The findings indicate that integration of seaweed-based biostimulants with recommended fertilizer management can enhance productivity and profitability of indigenous rice cultivated under coastal saline soils of the Indian Sundarbans.

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