Ecological and Edaphic Drivers of Yam Production in West Africa

Abstract

Yam is an important food and cash crop in West Africa (the yam belt) whose production is traditionally nonsedentary due to its substantial nutrient demand. Population growth, urbanization, and existing soil degradation have made nonsedentary farming virtually impossible. Despite the numerous research invested in yam production within and outside the yam belt, some gaps remain to be filled owing to changing climate events and global developments. Alarmingly, the yam belt is facing sharp yield declines despite increasing production areas. The key edaphic and ecological drivers of yam production in the global yam belt were reviewed. The implications for yam production were discussed along with prospects for future research, sustainable production, and soil management. The main findings are that (1) agroecological zone, postplanting cultural practices, and climate change and variability ecological drivers, while (2) tillage, soil type, texture, and fertility were the edaphic factors. The most critical among the drivers, principally, soil fertility, entails the biological and chemical through which nutrients are released lude, and physical soil fertility which enhances low bulk density, porosity, and water retention for free yam tuber expansion. Soil fertility was the most cited driver, which explains why yam is often the first crop in the cropland cultivation cycle in the yam belt. Data show that yam yields decline with time under native fertility and mineral fertilizer application due to the voracious nutrient extraction by tubers. Conversely, yields increase chronologically under organic fertilizer application due to the additive effects of the latter on soil properties. Thus, a yam fertilizer program to develop specific yam fertilizer formulations and the adoption of the Terra Preta Model are proposed to sustain future yam production.

Pan-Plastome of Greater Yam (Dioscorea alata) in China: Intraspecific Genetic Variation, Comparative Genomics, and Phylogenetic Analyses

“…First, D. alata is an important traditional food crop and considered a rich source of carbohydrates (75–84%), proteins (~7.4%), and vitamin C (13.0–24.7 mg/100 g) [ 4 , 5 ]. Second, D. alata has sufficient capacity to adapt to diverse agro-ecological and climatic environments and can be easily propagated vegetatively by tuber pieces [ 6 , 7 , 8 ]. Third, its tubers often have a delicate taste, an attractive tuber appearance, and an excellent long-term (4–6 months) storage ability [ 9 , 10 ].…”

Plant-biomass-based hybrid seed wraps mitigate yield and post-harvest losses among smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa

“…Among various tuber and root crops, yam ( Dioscorea rotundata and D. alata) is extremely valuable in West Africa, impacting the economic fate of millions of smallholder farmers 10 – 14 . Various climatic, cultural and edaphic factors dictate yam crop yield and quality 11 ; more importantly, 17–50% of the crop is lost annually to plant-parasitic nematodes (PPNs) 13 , 15 – 17 .…”

“…), yam ( Scutellonema bradys ) and lesion ( Pratylenchus spp.) 13 , 14 , 18 , play major roles in reducing yam crop values primarily because of lack of available, affordable control options 6 , 9 , 11 . The yam nematode S. bradys is probably the single-most important parasite due to its ubiquitous presence in yam plantings 14 .…”

Effect of xanthan gum and carboxymethyl cellulose on structure, functional and sensorial properties of yam balls

“…(2010) reported that about 400 million people thrive on yam as their main food source. About 72.58 million metric tons of yam are produced globally with major producers being Nigeria (73%), Ghana (12.5%), Côte d’Ivoire (10.5%), and Benin (4.5%) ( Neina, 2021 ). They are good source of carbohydrate, and provides about 200 calories of energy per capita on daily consumption ( Okoro and Ajieh, 2014 ).…”