International Symposium on
Drylands Ecology and Human Security

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Can Quality of Arid Lands be Improved by Incorporation of Water Hyacinth:
T
he Case of Sudan

*Mubarak, A.R. & Mohamed, F.A.

Desertification and Desert Cultivation Studies Institute, University of Khartoum, Shambat, Sudan
e-mail: mubarakaba@yahoo.com

 

Abstract

A green house experiment (for 12 weeks) was carried out to determine the effects of incorporation of water hyacinth on the quality of a sandy and clay soil in the semi – arid of Sudan. Treatments were control (no water hyacinth), 7.5 t ha of water hyacinth and inorganic fertilizer. The study showed that water hyacinth significantly decreased soil pH, increased cation exchange capacity, decreased hydraulic conductivity of the sandy soil. Incorporation of water hyacinth significantly immobilized soil nutrients (especially N) contents. However, application of water hyacinth significantly improved soil C content. It could be concluded that, judicious application of water hyacinth and inorganic fertilizer is needed to improve the quality of arid soils.