Mangrove/Halophytes have an important ecological and socio economic value. Halophytic compost has been identified as an alternative to chemical fertilizer to increasing soil fertility and crop production in sustainable farming. It is reported that the nutrient values of halophytes were higher when compared to green manures (glycophytes). Field experimental trials have shown that halophytic compost significantly increase the soil microflora and enzyme activities in cultivated soil and also increase the growth and yield characteristics of crops grown in salt affected agricultural land at coastal area. Following threads may provide you further information:
http://www.academicjournals.org/article/article1380882461_Ayyappan%20et%20al.pdf
http://www.ijest-ng.com/ijest-ng-vol2-no1-pp134-143.pdf
http://www.agriculturejournals.cz/publicFiles/00155.pdf
http://www.journalofecology.org/SpringboardWebApp/userfiles/jec/file/VI%20Bob%20Jefferies/65_3_pp_847-865.pdf
Soil fertility is a dynamic concept influenced by climate and cultural practices. Soil organic matter whether fresh or composted plays a vital role in maintaining nutrient availability and thus plant productivity. Field experiments were conducted to evaluate the effects of halophytic herbs which are normally available in coastal areas on growth and yield characteristics of Vigna radiata L. From the results, it is observed that among nine treatments given, the application of Suaeda compost in combination with farmyard manure (FYM) and phosphate solubilizing bacteria (T9) significantly increased the growth and yield characteristics of V. radiata in salt affected agricultural land at coastal area.
So, the awnser is yes, it can be.
Because I´m no specialist I have a short question. Don´t you expect long time problems when distributing the salt content to "normal" soil if you use halophytes as fertilizer?
I think your question is directly related to litter rather than halophytes. Litter decomposition should add nutrients to soils, and has fertilizer effect.
@ Xiaoguang Ouyanglitter and Mohammed Al-Molarather - Decomposed Waste/Fallen biomass also work as good biofertilizers. However the question is about potential of Mangrove herbs/biomass (Halophytes) as organic fertilizer and the answer is Yes.
From the point of view of mangrove preservation, I do not support the use of halophytes as organic fertilizer. The shrinkage of mangrove area has been well-recognized among mangrove research community. In the past decades, mangroves has been suffered from timber harvesting and other human disturbances. As a researcher in this area, I oppose any research promoting the use of mangrove living biomass as organic fertilizer, and I advocate peers conduct more studies that can arouse people's commitment on mangrove preservation and restoration.
I would like to support the view of Dr. Xioguang Ouyang. Regarding the fertilizer value of Mangrove spp. I think it will depend on the sp you are choosing. If it is salt accumulating, than the using the mangrove litter or decompose will not be a good one as it will increase the salinity more.
Not always; Micro- and macro-nutrients in halophytes are functions of ambient environmental conditions
Halophytes are the most important plant populations now a days useful in
1) Biosaline agriculture
2) Reclamation of saline soils
3) Extraction of edible oils
4)as Carbon sink ..........rather than the organic fertilizer
I believe specialized microorganisms are associated with halophytes. These microorganisms also support the salt tolerance by halophytes. If halophytes are decayed, in the form of compost and then this is used as organic fertilizer then I think it will definitely affect the soil's salt concentration.
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