Soil fertility management of smallholder farms in the humid tropics is a major issue as a result of inherently low fertility with nitrogen being the most limiting plant nutrient. Use of grain legume fallows could improve soil quality through nitrogen fixation and ensure food and nutritional security in developing countries. This field trial was laid out in a Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) to evaluate the short-term benefits of grain legume fallows (common bean, groundnut, cowpea, and soybean) on soil fertility improvement and income generation in relation to a natural weed fallow system. The results showed that total soil nitrogen content ranged from 0.19-0.24%, and differed (P < 0.001) significantly with the highest in common bean plots as compared to the others. The soil organic carbon (SOC) content was highest in cowpea plots (3.36 %) and lowest in the natural weed fallow (2.77 %). However, the SOC were not significantly different among the fallow systems but were higher than the SOC of the soil before sowing (2.41 %). Grain yield ranged from 1.0-1.9 t/ha and differed (P < 0.001) significantly. The highest profitability of integrating grain legumes in farming systems was recorded in the groundnut fallow, followed by soybean, and bean. Cowpea generated a negative return, while the natural fallow system had no effect. Integrating grain legumes fallow into agricultural systems in the humid tropics enhance the value of the fallow lands and may serve as viable short-term economic incentives for smallholder farmers. Contribution/Originality:This study contributes to the existing literature that reports the benefits of grain legumes on soil fertility improvement and also showed that the integration of grain legume fallows into agricultural systems in the humid tropics generate income for smallholder farmers and could serve as motivation for their adoption.
Summary Declining soil fertility and low fertilizer use are the major abiotic factors limiting the maize production in Cameroon. Therefore, the design and introduction of appropriate fertilizer schemes, which would improve maize yields and provide incentives for smallholder farmers, are considered imperative. In 2018, a field experiment was conducted on the farm of the Institute of Agricultural Research for Development (IRAD) in Ekona, the south-west region of Cameroon, to investigate the profitability and impact of inorganic fertilizers on maize production. The experiment was laid out in a randomized complete block design with four replications and four treatments, using different fertilizer rates per hectare in each treatment (namely unfertilized control (T1), 50 kg urea + 50 kg N-P-K (T2), 100 kg urea + 100 kg N-P-K (T3) and 150 kg urea + 150 kg N-P-K (T4)). The results obtained indicate that all the maize growth parameters (plant height, number of leaves per plant, stem girth and leaf area) and yield components considered (cob length, cob diameter and test weight of 100 grains) were significantly (P < 0.05) higher in T4 than T1. The grain yields recorded ranged from 4.09–5.88 t ha−1 and were also statistically (P < 0.05) higher in T4 than T1. The incremental income based on the fertilizer use was the highest in T4, followed by T3 and T2. The value cost ratio (VCR) was greater than 2 in all the treatments and was found to be highest in T2 (3.15), followed by T4 (2.52) and T3 (2.49). As T2, T3 and T4 did not differ statistically (P > 0.05), all the fertilizer rates considered were economically viable, but T4 provide the most cost-effective due to its higher grain yields and incremental income.
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