Assessment of Cyanobacterial Biomass as Sustainable Agricultural Fertilizer: Soil Experiment with Plants in Pot

Abstract

: Providing food to the growing human population in a sustainable way is one of the greatest challenges of modern society. In this context, cyanobacterial biomass (CB) can function as a source of macronutrients to increase soil productivity. These organisms can be collected from the environment in considerable amounts, since they tend to grow in large blooms. However, some of these cyanobacterial strains produce toxins that need to be carefully monitored to avoid food accumulation. The objective of this work was to evaluate the possible use of toxic and non-toxic strains of CB as fertilizer supplement in the growth of economically relevant vegetables. One-month-old Raphanus sativus (radish) and Spinacia oleracea (spinach) plants were grown in pots in indoor controlled conditions. Six experimental conditions were set: (1) a control with no nutrient