Biomass contribution and nutrient recycling of organic matter management practices in tropical smallholder annual farming systems

Ekyaligonza, Deous Mary; Tibasiima, Thaddeo Kahigwa; Dietrich, Phillipp; Akoraebirungi, Bendicto; Kagorora, John Patrick Kanahe; Friedel, Jürgen K.; Melcher, Andreas; Freyer, Bernhard

doi:10.1080/09064710.2022.2134819

Cited by 3 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 34 publications

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“…Sufficient above-ground biomass (up to 8.7 mt/ha/yr) for cover under C. arabica was produced by T3 as compared to the control where only 3.2 mt/ha/yr was generated. This result agrees with findings on biomass generation by M. pruriens under different soil, agroecological, and cropping system conditions [46][47][48][49][50]. Similarly, related studies indicate that M. dura has a high stem density [66] and can produce above-ground biomass of 8.2-17 mt/ha [89].…”

Section: Above-ground Biomasssupporting

confidence: 90%

“…Similarly, related studies indicate that M. dura has a high stem density [66] and can produce above-ground biomass of 8.2-17 mt/ha [89]. Therefore, the results of this experiment agree with the documented evidence that above-ground biomass cover increases via the integration of legumes [45,46]. The decline in above-ground biomass of T1 during SR2 and LR2 confirms findings from other studies where successive planting and cutting of M. pruriens produced declining above-ground biomass [47,53].…”

Section: Above-ground Biomasssupporting

confidence: 89%

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Impact of Integrating Annual and Perennial Legumes under Coffea arabica on Sloping Land

et al. 2023

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Above-ground biomass cover under Coffea arabica on sloping land is beneficial but difficult to sustain. Interplanting annual and perennial legumes can sustain the above-ground biomass cover, and improve soil fertility, yield, and profitability. This was tested on 26 sloping farms in a four-growing season experiment on undersowing C. arabica with new crop combinations: Mucuna pruriens var. utilis (T1); Millettia dura Dunn (T2); a combination of M. pruriens and M. dura (T3); and the control with a no-cover legume (T4). On each farm, all treatments followed a randomized single-block design. T3 produced 8.7 mt/ha/yr above-ground biomass that was significantly (p < 0.01) higher than other treatments and was increasing with the seasons. Under T3, plant-available nitrogen (N) and potassium (K) increased more than in other treatments. During the fourth season, coffee yield in T3 was 54%, 22%, and 11% higher than in T4, T2, and T1, respectively. The gross profit under T3 was 86% higher than in T4 in the fourth season. This indicates that interplanting a combination of M. pruriens and M. dura under C. arabica on sloping land can sustainably increase above-ground biomass cover, soil’s plant-available N and K, coffee yield, and profitability. Based on the results, the combination of M. pruriens and M. dura is recommended to optimize coffee production under the described conditions.

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Section: Above-ground Biomasssupporting

confidence: 90%

Section: Above-ground Biomasssupporting

confidence: 89%

Impact of Integrating Annual and Perennial Legumes under Coffea arabica on Sloping Land

et al. 2023

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“…A combination of crop residues, M. pruriens and F. albida leaves is later referred to as plant residues in the subsequent sections. As indicated in Ekyaligonza et al (2022), the quantity of plant residues that were incorporated into the soil in T1 was 18, 11, 11 and 15 tons/ha during SR2018, LR2018, SR2019, and LR2019 respectively, while those incorporated into the OMM treatments was 2.9-3.6, 24-137, 61-180, and 15-145 tons/ha during SR2018, LR2018, SR2019 and LR2019 respectively depending on the treatment. The total nutrients in these plant residues is described in Table 2.…”

Section: Field Experiments Experimental Design Treatments and Samplingmentioning

confidence: 92%

“…The first part of this section describes the study area and the field trials including the experimental design, choice of crops, and sampling procedure. This section was adapted from the methodology developed by Ekyaligonza et al (2022). The second part of this section is the economic analysis of the different OMM strategies (treatments) over four crop-growing seasons in 2018 and 2019.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Secondly, the higher DM yields in the LR2019 could also be attributed to the decomposition of plant residues as reported by Bu et al (2020) in a study where soil organic carbon, organic matter, and macro aggregates increased after the decomposition of the crop residues. Moreover, the plant residues in the OMM strategies contained up to 6620, 411, and 3333 kg/ha of total N, P and K respectively while those under the fertilizer application strategy contained 243, 23 and 119 kg/ha of total N, P and K respectively (Ekyaligonza et al, 2022). For T2-T5, the higher maize yield during LR2019 than in LR2018 could have occurred as feedback on the incorporated crop residues of the bean precrop in SR2019 and its N2 fixation (see also Nassary et al, 2020).…”

Section: Impact Of Omm Strategies On Dry Matter Yield Of Cropsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Short-term trade-offs of organic matter management strategies for smallholder farms

Ekyaligonza

Tibasiima

Dietrich

et al. 2022

Front. Sustain. Food Syst.

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Organic matter management (OMM) strategies such as farmyard manure (FYM) application, legume integration, crop residue incorporation, and alley cropping are recognized for improving soil fertility and crop productivity. However, studies on yield and economics of a combination of such strategies on smallholder farms are generally scarce, yet an understanding of such can enhance adoption. This study analyzed the yield and gross margins of crops grown with OMM strategies in comparison to those grown under inorganic fertilizer application on smallholder farms. Field experiments with five treatments over two short rainy (SR) and two long rainy (LR) seasons were conducted from January 2018 to February 2020 on 10 smallholder farms. The treatments (T) included T1 (control): the inorganic fertilizer application strategy that involved maize monocrop with 50 kg/ha Diammonium phosphate (DAP) application and the OMM strategies (T2-T5). T2: cowpea-maize-bean-maize rotation; T3: cowpea-maize-bean-maize rotation + 2.5 tons/ha FYM; T4: Faidherbia albida alleys + cowpea-maize-bean-maize rotation; and T5: Faidherbia albida alleys + cowpea-maize-bean-maize rotation + 2.5 tons/ha FYM. The maize in T3-T5 was intercropped with Mucuna pruriens. The results indicate that the grain and residue yields in LR were not significantly different among all treatments. The total variable costs, which included monetarized labor and annualized capital costs for the establishment of F. albida were significantly higher under T1 than in T2-T5 during LR2018 and not significantly different from what was observed under T3-T5 in LR2019. The accumulated revenues and gross margins for the four seasons were not significantly different between T1 and the OMM strategies. We conclude that the integration of OMM strategies can give gross margins similar to the 50 kg/ha DAP application. Further, based on the price sensitivity analysis, we conclude that the smallholder farmers could adopt T3 and T4 as the gross margins under these treatments are less affected by grain price fluctuations than in T1, T2, and T5. Since the smallholder farmers can access the planting materials, we recommend the adoption of T3 and T4 on smallholder farms.

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Factors influencing adoption of organic matter management on smallholder farms in the Rwenzori region of Uganda

Ekyaligonza,

Tibasiima,

Bwambale

et al. 2024

Org. Agr.

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Context specific studies on the factors influencing the adoption of organic matter management (OMM) practices on smallholder farms could be crucial for soil fertility improvement. This study aimed to understand the factors influencing the adoption of OMM practices by smallholder farmers. A hybridized theoretical framework was used to map the farmers’ adoption process. This framework states: the adoption process of OMM practices can be facilitated if an individual’s characteristics and the institutional-related factors can support it; information about the OMM practices and the required inputs are available, and he/she can apply the required technology with ease. Data collection involved observations on 100 smallholder farms, interviews with 10 smallholder farmers and 18 experts, as well as two focus group discussions with 10 farmers each. The results indicated that a composite of technical, social, cultural, and economic-driven factors influence farmer adoption of OMM strategies. These factors included the farmer characteristics of age, education status, gender, culture, and knowledge about the use and application of an OMM practice; availability of labor and inputs; availability of appropriate equipment; the existence of supportive policy framework and social support. The factors cut across the adoption components of the hybridized theoretical framework: nature of technology, farmer characteristics, and input-related, information transfer-related and institutional-related adoption factors. The study findings can inform decision-makers to make investment decisions. Future studies should assess the feasibility of the hybridized theoretical framework before experts can apply it in devising strategies for the adoption of OMM practices on smallholder farms.

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Biomass contribution and nutrient recycling of organic matter management practices in tropical smallholder annual farming systems

Cited by 3 publications

References 34 publications

Impact of Integrating Annual and Perennial Legumes under Coffea arabica on Sloping Land

Impact of Integrating Annual and Perennial Legumes under Coffea arabica on Sloping Land

Short-term trade-offs of organic matter management strategies for smallholder farms

Factors influencing adoption of organic matter management on smallholder farms in the Rwenzori region of Uganda

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