Effects of organic amendments and fertilizers on biomass yield, bioactive compounds and heavy metals content of Phyllanthus niruri L.

Soil amendment using organic materials such as chicken manure and/or biochar may potentially improve the soil physico-chemical properties, and crop production. Both biochar and chicken manure are commonly used for alleviating the infertility of highly weathered soil. The general aim of this study was to determine optimum rate of soil amendment and investigate effects of rice husk biochar and chicken manure as a soil amendment on biomass yield, bioactive compounds, nutrient uptake and heavy metals concentration of Phyllanthus niruri. A polybag study was conducted with treatments of three rates of biochar application (0, 5 and 10 t ha-1) and three rates of chicken manure (0, 2.5 and 5 t ha-1) laid out in Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with four replications. Results showed that co-application of 10 t ha -1 biochar and 2.5 t ha-1 chicken manure produced optimum yield of Phyllanthus niruri which are 1720.80 mg plant-1 and higher phyllanthin and hypophyllanthin contents (11.85 mg plant-1 and 12.77 mg plant-1). Application of biochar and chicken manure increased N, P and K uptake by 37% and 42% compared to control treatment. Application of chicken manure and biochar also able to reduce the heavy metal concentrations (cadmium and arsenic) in plant tissue. Application of chicken manure without biochar has produced about 5.25 to 8.89 mg kg-1 arsenic concentration (above Maximum Permissible Levels) in plant tissue compared to combination treatment between biochar and chicken manure which range between 3.06 to 5.06 mg kg-1. Cadmium and arsenic uptake by Phyllanthus niruri were below the Maximum Permissible Levels. There are about 40% increases in phyllanthin content and 34% increase in hypophyllanthin content with the selected rate of amendment. However, phyllantin and hypophyllanthin concentration in P. niruri was not affected both biochar and chicken manure amendment. Excessive use of chemical fertilizer has resulted in negative effects to the environment. Thus, organic waste can be converted to valuable source of fertilizer. Organic fertilizers can help to improve the soil chemical properties, enhance crop performance and increase the uptake of nutrient to the plants. The optimum rate of biochar and chicken manure treatment (10 t ha-1 and 2.5 t ha-1 respectively) was selected as amendment for second study. A field study was conducted to investigate effects of different types and rates of compost as an organic fertilizer for improvement of biomass yield, bioactive compounds concentration and yield, nutrients uptake and in reducing the heavy metals concentration in Phyllanthus niruri. The treatments comprised of repetition different types of compost (animal-based and plant-based) with five rates of application (0, 100, 200, 300 and 400 kg N ha-1) laid out in split-plot design with four replications. Shoot dry weight of Phyllanthus niruri increased by 43% and 41% with application of plant-based and animal-based fertilizer at rate 400 kg N ha-1 compared to control treatment. Application of plant-based fertilizer at rate 400 kg N ha-1 increased the N, P and K uptake by 43%, 31% and 29% compared to animal-based fertilizer at same rate. Concentrations of cadmium and lead also decreased with increasing rate of organic fertilizer and were below the Maximum Permissible Levels (MPLs). Result shows that application of 400 kg N ha-1 animal-based fertilizer reduced 43% cadmium concentration and 42% lead concentration compared to control treatment, while there were 20% decreased in lead and 24% decreased in cadmium compared to application of 400 kg N ha-1 plant-based fertilizer. However, phyllanthin and hypophyllanthin concentrations were not affected by types of organic fertilizer and application rate. This study also suggested that the optimum rate of 400 kg N ha-1 animal-based fertilizer revealed the best biomass yield, phyllanthin and hypophyllanthin contents, and low heavy metal concentration of Phyllanthus niruri. Overall, this study demonstrates the potential of biochar and chicken manure as organic amendment along with animal-based organic fertilizer in producing organically Phyllanthus niruri with better yield, higher phyllanthin and hypophyllanthin contents, high nutrient uptake and low in heavy metal concentration compared to control treatment which is the critical factor for medicinal herbs production.

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