scholarly journals Characterisation of Chamaecytisus tagasaste, Moringa oleifera and Vachellia karroo Vermicomposts and Their Potential to Improve Soil Fertility

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (22) ◽  
pp. 9305
Author(s):  
Mahlare Mapula Mokgophi ◽  
Alen Manyevere ◽  
Kingsley Kwabena Ayisi ◽  
Lawrence Munjonji
Keyword(s):  
Soil Fertility ◽  
Eisenia Fetida ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Moringa Oleifera ◽  
Smallholder Farmers ◽  
Nutrient Content ◽  
Nutrient Supply ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Poor Soil

Poor soil fertility and land degradation limit crop production among smallholder farmers. The practice of agroforestry with leguminous trees has proven to be sustainable as it bolsters nutrient supply through nitrogen fixation and nutrient cycling. The beneficiation of agroforestry species could add even more value by using tree based waste materials as mulch or vermicomposting. A study was conducted to investigate the impact of vermicomposting on chemical and biological characteristics of three agroforestry species; Chamaecytisus tagasaste, Vachellia karroo and Moringa oleifera. Eisenia fetida earthworms were added to the leaves and small twigs of the three trees in worm composting bins. The worms were allowed to feed on the feedstocks for six weeks under laboratory conditions. The results showed that vermicomposting significantly enhanced macronutrient nutrient content in all the three feedstocks. The findings also showed that the quality of the vermicompost depends on the feedstock type. M. oleifera had the best quality vermicomposts with a significantly higher composition of macronutrients which ranged between 50 and 170% higher for Ca, K, Mg and P. Vermicomposting increased Mo while other micronutrients such as Zn, Mn, Fe and B significantly decreased with vermicomposting time. In addition, vermicomposting increased E. fetida reproduction with more than a 450% increase in earthworm numbers in all three feedstocks. In conclusion, vermicompost have potential to be used to improve soil fertility and thus reduce the use of synthetic fertilisers in crop production.

scholarly journals Soil fertilization synergistically enhances the impact of pollination services in increasing seed yield of sunflower under dryland conditions

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-14
Author(s):  
Dolapo Bola Adelabu ◽  
Emile Bredenhand ◽  
Sean van der Merwe ◽  
Angelinus Cornelius Franke
Keyword(s):  
Soil Fertility ◽  
Seed Yield ◽  
Synergetic Effect ◽  
Insect Pollination ◽  
Pollination Services ◽  
Degraded Soil ◽  
Soil Fertilization ◽  
Fertilized Soil ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Poor Soil

Abstract To exploit the potential of ecological intensification during sunflower cropping, it is crucial to understand the potential synergies between crop management and ecosystem services. We therefore examined the effect of pollination intensification on sunflower yield and productivity under various levels of soil fertilization over two seasons in the eastern Free State, South Africa. We manipulated soil fertility with fertilizer applications and pollination with exclusion bags. We found a synergetic effect between pollination and soil fertilization whereby increasing pollination intensity led to a far higher impact on sunflower yield when the soil had been fertilized. Specifically, the intensification of insect pollination increased seed yield by approximately 0.4 ton/ha on nutrient poor soil and by approximately 1.7 ton/ha on moderately fertilized soil. Our findings suggest that sunflower crops on adequate balanced soil fertility will receive abundant insect pollination and may gain more from both synergies than crops grown in areas with degraded soil fertility.

scholarly journals Analysis of Quality of Backyard Compost and Its Potential Utilization as a Circular Bio-Waste Source

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (10) ◽  
pp. 4392
Author(s):  
Apolka Ujj ◽  
Kinga Percsi ◽  
Andras Beres ◽  
Laszlo Aleksza ◽  
Fernanda Ramos Diaz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Crop Production ◽  
Basic Education ◽  
Raw Materials ◽  
Nutrient Content ◽  
Quality Analysis ◽  
Weed Seed ◽  
Quality Properties ◽  
Seed Dispersion ◽  
Materials Used

The use and quality analysis of household compost have become very important issues in recent years due to the increasing interest in local food production and safe, self-produced food. The phenomenon was further exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic quarantine period, which gave new impetus to the growth of small home gardens. However, the knowledge associated with making high-quality compost is often lacking in home gardeners. Therefore, the objective of this research was to find answers to the following questions: can the quality of backyard compost be considered safe in terms of toxicity and nutrient content? Can weed seed dispersion affect the usability of backyard compost? In general, can the circulation of organic matter be increased with the spread of home composting? In this study, 16 different house composts were analysed for stability, weed seed contamination, toxic elements, and nutrient content using analysis of variance. The results of the research showed that the quality properties of the composts (including their weed seed dispersion effect) were greatly influenced by the different techniques and raw materials used. The toxicity levels, as well as the content of macro and microelements, were within the parameters of safe-quality compost. The specific macronutrient (Ca, Mg) and micronutrient (Fe, Mn) contents of the tested composts have a similar and, in some cases, more favorable nutrient supply capacity in crop production than the frequently-used cow manure-based composts. With a plan of basic education on composting, there is potential to encourage farmyard composting.

scholarly journals Increasing nutrient levels promote growth and flower quality in lilies grown under soilless culture

2017 ◽  
Vol 44 (No. 4) ◽  
pp. 171-177 ◽  
Author(s):  
Malik G. Al-Ajlouni ◽  
Jamal Y. Ayad ◽  
Yahia A. Othman
Keyword(s):  
Electrical Conductivity ◽  
Nutrient Supply ◽  
Soilless Culture ◽  
Flower Longevity ◽  
Flower Buds ◽  
Content Index ◽  
Flower Quality ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Different Doses

This research was aimed at assessing the impact of different doses of nutrients on growth and flower quality of the Asiatic hybrid Lilium ((Lilium × elegans Thunb.) cv. ‘Fangio’) under the soilless culture. Five nutrient (fertigation) regimes were applied (T1: daily, T2: twice a week, T3: weekly, T4: twice a month and T5: control). Increasing the nutrient supply increased chlorophyll content index (SPAD, 45–93%), leaf area (30–55%), number of flowers per plant (25–67%) and substrate electrical conductivity (EC: 28–300%) compared to control. Although T3 (weekly nutrient supply) had lower shoot N, P, K<sup>+</sup> and Ca<sup>+2</sup> concentrations than T1, this regimen increased the number of flower buds by 20% and flower longevity by 56% compared to T1. Overall, weekly nutrient application is effective at maintaining flower quality and yield in the ‘Fangio’ lily, and compares favourably with programs in which fertigation is more frequent and the level of total applied nutrients is higher.

scholarly journals Large Scale Demo Plot Trial Project of Potash Fertilization for Increased Yield and Profitability for Smallholder Soybean Fields in India

2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 159-170
Author(s):  
Joachim B. Nachmansohn ◽  
Patricia Imas ◽  
Surinder K. Bansal
Keyword(s):  
Soil Fertility ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Smallholder Farmers ◽  
Agricultural Practices ◽  
Crop Productivity ◽  
Fine Tuning ◽  
Soil Testing ◽  
Yield Increase ◽  
K Fertilization

Agriculture is the backbone of the Indian economy, in spite of concerned efforts towards industrialization in the last three decades. Therefore, the soil quality and fertility are the major factors in crop production. Declining soil fertility is one of the primary factors that directly affect crop productivity, and fertilizer-use is a key factor in order to keep soil fertility and productivity. A major factor in declining soil fertility is potassium (K) depletion, especially on smallholder farms where fertilization decisions are not based on regular soil testing. Most of the smallholder soybean producers do not have access and investment capacity to soil testing services. Therefore, there is a need to create K fertilizer recommendations based on empirically verified knowledge at India-specific scale. Such large-scale studies, in local filed conditions, are currently lacking. In order to bridge this gap, and generate proven set of directly applicable recommendations, a large-scale plot trial was launched; the Potash for Life (PFL) project. The study evaluated the K response in soybean when fertilizing with potash on K depleted soils in local variable field conditions. The aim was to (1) evaluate the effect and response consistency of K application on soybean yield, (2) to demonstrate to farmers the increased yield and profitability from K-inclusive fertilization regimes for this crop and give recommendations for transient yield increase, and (3) to raise the awareness among smallholder farmers about the importance of K fertilization. A comprehensive experiment was carried out in Madhya Pradesh (M.P.) and Maharashtra. The methodology was straight-forward; two identical plots side by side, with the only difference that one of them was fertilized with additional potash. The results showed a significant yield increase response from the potash application; the average yield increase was 244 kg ha-1 or 26 % in M.P., and 105 kg ha-1 or 36 % in Maharashtra. This entailed an average additional net profit of ₹ 6,681 INR ha-1 and ₹ 2,544 INR ha-1, in M.P. and Maharashtra respectively. It was concluded that the soil status of plant available K is significantly lower than the plant demand for soybean production in the two states, Consequently, K fertilization is necessary in order to improve agricultural practices and optimizing yields. Ultimately, following recommendations given in this study would allow farmers to generate additional profit, which could further allow them to invest in fine-tuning fertilizer practices through the means of soil testing.

scholarly journals Quantifying and Mapping of Major, Secondary and Micronutrient Status of Tomato Growing Soils in Kolar District, Karnataka Using GIS and GPS Approach

2020 ◽  
pp. 14-27
Author(s):  
P. N. Siva Prasad ◽  
C. T. Subbarayappa ◽  
V. Ramamurthy ◽  
A. Sathish
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Variability ◽  
Soil Fertility ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Nutrient Management ◽  
Nutrient Status ◽  
Available Nitrogen ◽  
Micronutrient Status ◽  
High Nutrient ◽  
Nutrient Index ◽  
The Impact

Assessment of land use-induced changes in soil properties is essential for addressing issues of spatial variability in soil fertility and sustainable land productivity. In view of this, a study was conducted to assess the impact of spatial variability on physicochemical properties, macro and micro nutrient status of 75 farmers fields of tomato growing areas of Kolar district, Karnataka. Arc Map with spatial analyst function of Arc GIS software was used to prepare soil fertility maps, which would act as an important tool for soil as well as nutrient management for sustainable crop production by using Global Positioning System coordinates. The results revealed that the soils under investigation were acidic to alkaline in reaction (pH 4.41 to 8.13), mostly non saline and low to high in organic carbon status (0.53 to 1.95%). Available nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and sulphur content varied from 150.53-348.10, 6.4 - 111.44, 147.18 - 916.61 and 12.29 - 103.8 kg ha-1. Exchangeable Ca, Mg are in the range of 2.5 – 14.2 and 1.2 – 6.6 C mol (p+) kg. The GIS-aided thematic maps with respect to available zinc, 6.67 (low), 21.33 (medium) and 72 (high) per cent samples were categorized, based on the existing critical limits. All the studied samples i.e., 100 per cent were high in copper content, 65.33, 30.67 and 4 per cent samples of Mn, 25.33, 32 and 42.67 per cent samples of Fe, were categorized as low, medium and high in nutrient status respectively. With respect to available boron 16.67 per cent was under low, 38.09 per cent was under medium and 45.24 per cent was under high nutrient status. The nutrient index (NI) of tomato growing areas of Kolar district revealed that N (1.19), manganese (1.39) and iron (1.29) were categorized as low, available boron (2.17) as medium and P (2.65), K (2.71), S (2.65) zinc (2.75), copper (3.0) as high nutrient index category.

scholarly journals Shortage of water in Teesta river basin and its impact on crop production in northern Bangladesh

2018 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 113-123 ◽  
Author(s):  
ML Raihan ◽  
MA Sarker ◽  
MAM Miah
Keyword(s):  
Heavy Metal ◽  
Data Analysis ◽  
Soil Fertility ◽  
River Basin ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Water Shortage ◽  
Pests And Diseases ◽  
Different Types ◽  
The Impact

The objectives of the study were to (i) assess the extent of water shortage in the downstream of Teesta River Basin (TRB) areas; (ii) explore the problems associated with crop production due to water shortage in TRB areas and (iii) examine the impact of water shortage on crop production in TRB areas. The study was conducted in four villages under Nilphmari district during April, 2015. By secondary data analysis and farmers’ perception it was clear that water flow and discharge of Teesta river was decreasing significantly during the last 15 years. The major impact was the dramatic increase in costs of irrigation of major crops and ultimately rise in the costs of production and less profit from farming. All of the farmers (100%) opined that the irrigation costs of major crops have been increasing due to shortage of water. The cultivation of LWRC due to water shortage was also a major impact of water shortage on crop production. Farmers were concentrating more on cultivating maize, tobacco, wheat, different types of vegetables etc. compared to rice particularly in dry season. Different types of problems like increased amount of heavy metal in crop land due to continuous uplifting of ground water, decrease soil fertility, increase pests and diseases to crops, fallowing of high and medium high land, increase of fertilizer and pesticide costs etc. were affecting farmers severely in crop production.SAARC J. Agri., 15(2): 113-123 (2017)

scholarly journals Adaptation to drought in arid and semi-arid environments: Case of the Zambezi Valley, Zimbabwe

2015 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Emmanuel Mavhura ◽  
Desmond Manatsa ◽  
Terence Mushore
Keyword(s):  
Crop Production ◽  
Smallholder Farmers ◽  
Meteorological Data ◽  
Rainfall Variability ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Arid Environments ◽  
Water Shortages ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Semi Arid ◽  
Zambezi Valley

Small-scale rain-fed agriculture is the main livelihood in arid to semi-arid regions of subSaharan Africa. The area is characterised by erratic rainfall and frequent droughts, making the capacity for coping with temporal water shortages essential for smallholder farmers. Focusing on the Zambezi Valley, Zimbabwe, this study investigates the impact of drought on food security and the strategies used by smallholder farmers to cope with drought. We used meteorological data and interviews to examine the rainfall variability in the study area and the drought-coping mechanisms employed by smallholder famers respectively. The results show that there are various strategies used by smallholder farmers to cope with the impact of drought. These strategies include drought-tolerant crop production, crop variety diversification, purchasing cereals through asset sales, non-governmental organisations’ food aid and gathering wild fruit. However, consecutive droughts have resulted in high food insecurity and depletion of household assets during droughts. Smallholder farmers in the valley have also resorted to a number of measures taken before, during and after the drought. Still, these strategies are not robust enough to cope with this uncertainty

scholarly journals Fertility Capability Classification (FCC): A case for some rainfed soils of semi-arid Deccan plateau

Agropedology ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Vasu ◽  
◽  
S.K. Singh ◽  
K. Karthikeyan ◽  
V. P. Duraisami ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Soil Fertility ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Moisture Stress ◽  
Nutrient Supply ◽  
Soil Series ◽  
Viable Option ◽  
Soil Moisture Stress ◽  
Nutrient Reserve ◽  
Deccan Plateau ◽  
Semi Arid

Soil fertility capability classification (FCC) is a technical system which groups the soils according to kinds of problems they present for management. The soil fertility related constraints can be identified without testing for soil nutrients and the FCC tries to bridge the gap between pedology and soil fertility.The present study is an attempt to classify the soils of six soil series under rainfed conditions identified in a part of southern Deccan plateau. Three pedons were selected from each soil series to represent the range in characteristics of soil properties. According to FCC, the representative pedons were classified as LRdkemr+ (Gummagonda); Ldkmr+ (Pullagiri); LCdki (Chegunta); Ldkbn (Nerelapally); Cdʋkbn (Avancha) and Ldkemn- (Koduparthy). The presence of condition modifiers soil moisture stress (d) and low nutrient reserve (k) indicates that all the soils are poor in soil fertility and available moisture content. The soils of Gummagonda are shallow with root restricting layer and cultivation of crops makes these soils prone to erosion. Hence, pasture development is a viable option to conserve these soils.Poor nutrient supply (k), calcareousness (b) and Alkalinity (n) are the major constraints in soils of Nerelapally and Avancha and they need to be ameliorated with suitable amendments to sustain crop production.

scholarly journals IoT Enabled Soil Testing

2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (S1) ◽  
pp. 54-57
Author(s):  
P. Sindhu ◽  
G. Indirani
Keyword(s):  
Plant Growth ◽  
Moisture Content ◽  
Soil Fertility ◽  
Soil Nutrients ◽  
Mobile Application ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Ph Value ◽  
Vital Role ◽  
Soil Testing

Agriculture is the main occupation of our country and it plays a vital role in our country. Using too much of fertilizers may lead to the inferior quality of the crop production. So the measurement of soil nutrients is greatly required for better plant growth. Determining the amount of nutrients in the soil is the key function. pH value is also one of the most important and informative soil parameter to detect the soil fertility and it is measured to identify the soil fertility. In the proposed system, it determines the crops which are suitable for the particular soil type. It will analyze moisture content, temperature and humidity in soil at real time and it will also suggest the crops based on determined PH of soil. This system is proposed to help the farmers to increase the production and the suggestions are made through the mobile application.

scholarly journals Influence of the Caiçaras on Soil Properties in the Savanna Region of Roraima, Northern Amazon

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (20) ◽  
pp. 11354
Author(s):  
Ludmilla Verona C. Gonçalves ◽  
Rachel C. Pinho ◽  
Marta Iria C. Ayres ◽  
Cesar A. Ticona-Benavente ◽  
Henrique dos Santos Pereira ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Soil Fertility ◽  
Indigenous Peoples ◽  
Agricultural Production ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Soil Surface ◽  
Total Porosity ◽  
Nutrient Content ◽  
Soil Bulk Density ◽  
Natural Fertility ◽  
Physical And Chemical

The management of caiçaras by indigenous peoples in the “Lavrado” (savannas) region of Roraima is a practice that increases soil fertility. Caiçaras are temporary corrals where farmers keep the cattle at night for a certain period, when the soil is enriched by manure addition. In periods when these areas are not used as corrals, they may be planted with different plants species. In addition, areas adjacent to caiçaras may receive manure runoff and also be used for crop production. The study evaluated the changes in soil physical and chemical characteristics resulting from manure supply and runoff in caiçara and adjacent areas and compared these to soil characteristics of nearby unmanaged areas. Soil samples from the three system components were analyzed. The nutrient content added by manure runoff in the plantation adjacent to the caiçara resulted in significant accumulations of organic Ca, Mg, K, P, C, and micronutrients in the soil, without, however, changing pH. Only the soil surface (0–5 cm) showed improvements in soil bulk density and total porosity. This soil management system proves how efficient indigenous farmers can be in integrating their livestock component with the exploitation of available resources to improve soil fertility in areas of low natural fertility, enhancing agricultural production.

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