Reduce Cost of Feeding in Livestock Farming by Using Azolla

With the incessant hike in the prices of livestock feed ingredients, the present situation of things in the country, it's indeed a due call for farmers to start looking for alternatives to cut the cost of feeding in livestock and even to enhance productivity by minimizing the cost of feeding with the view of increasing the profit margin of the farm. As it is our continuous culture to be providing solutions just as we did with the hydroponic system, which is also a way of minimizing or reducing the cost of feeding in livestock farming, here is another one.

Now let's get started, What is Azolla? Azolla is a genus of seven species of aquatic ferns in the family Salviniaceae. They are extremely reduced in form and specialized, looking nothing like other typical ferns but more resembling duckweed or some mosses. Azolla filiculoides is one of just two fern species for which a reference genome has been published. Azolla is considered an invasive plant in wetlands, freshwater lakes and ditches. It can alter aquatic ecosystems and biodiversity substantially.

Azolla is a highly productive plant. It doubles its biomass in 1.9 days or more, depending on conditions, and yield can reach 8–10 tonnes fresh matter/ha in Asian rice fields. Azolla floats on the surface of water by means of numerous small, closely overlapping scale-like leaves, with their roots hanging in the water. They form a symbiotic relationship with the cyanobacterium Anabaena azollae, which fixes atmospheric nitrogen. The plant can readily colonise areas of freshwater, and grow at great speed - doubling its biomass every two to three days. The typical limiting factor on its growth is phosphorus. An abundance of phosphorus, due for example to eutrophication or chemical runoff, often leads to Azolla blooms. Unlike all other known plants, its symbiotic microorganism transfers directly from one generation to the next. A. azollae is completely dependent on its host, as several of its genes have either been lost or transferred to the nucleus in Azolla's cells.

The nitrogen-fixing capability of Azolla has led to widespread use as a biofertiliser, especially in parts of southeast Asia. The plant has been used to bolster agricultural productivity in China for over a thousand years. It also help in suppressing weeds. Azolla are weeds in many parts of the world, entirely covering some bodies of water. The myth that no mosquito can penetrate the coating of fern to lay its eggs in the water gives the plant its common name "mosquito fern" and may deter the survival of some of the larvae. Most species can produce large amounts of deoxyanthocyanins in response to various stresses, including bright sunlight and extreme temperatures, causing the water surface to appear to be covered with an intensely red carpet. Herbivore feeding induces accumulation of deoxyanthocyanins and leads to a reduction in the proportion of polyunsaturated fatty acids in the fronds, thus lowering their palatability and nutritive value.

With all these aforementioned good characteristics and qualities of Azolla, It can be used in so many ways but in the context of this article, we would be limiting it to sustainable production of livestock feed. Azolla is rich in protein, essential amino acids, vitamins and minerals. Studies describe feeding Azolla to dairy cattle, pigs, ducks, and chickens, with reported increases in milk production, weight of broiler chickens and egg production of layers, as compared to conventional feed.

Now that we have established the fact the Azolla is offers a solution to produce and provide livestock feed due to the limited resources for the farmers, and also it's highly advantageous that its cultivation requires less investment and it's fast growing, Now how do we grow Azolla? To grow Azolla we would need the following materials:

• A water bed; HDPE pond, a wide plastic trough or concrete pond.
• Azolla seeds
• Manure and fertilizer
• Soil
• Water
• Plastic sieve

Having provided all these materials here are the steps to follow to grow Azolla:

1. Make a solution of water, soil, manure and fertilizer.
2. Pour water into the pond.
3. Add the solution into the pond.
4. Finally transfer the Azolla seeds.
5. Harvest the Azolla after few days with the sieve.

After harvesting, it can be fed directly to livestock or mixed with feed or concentrates. Finally and most importantly, to get the Azolla seeds from a reliable source from our little research, I'd suggest you contact BIC farm concept on these numbers:

(+234) 803-407-9631, (+234) 812-854-6244. OR at this address: 145 Oko-Oba Rd, Agege 100284, Lagos.

On the agribusiness idea and tips' corner, Azolla can be cultivated on a large scale for sale to make cool cash following the aforementioned steps. Good luck on you try this new method of reducing cost of feeding in Livestock Farming. and if you also have Azolla seed for sale, post your contact on the comment section.