Soil Drainage and Nutrient Management to Improve Productivity of Waterlogged Vertisols for Small-scale Farmers

Abstract

Vertisols cover large part of the high rainfall areas of Ethiopia. However, the potential of these soils is not well exploited because of heavy water logging during the main rain season. A study was conducted to investigate the interactive effects of soil drainage and fertilizer application on the productivity of Vertisols. Factorial combinations of four planting beds (Broadbed and furrow (BBF) with 100 cm bed size, broadbed and furrow with 80 cm bed size, ridge and furrow (RF) with 30 cm bed size, and flatbed) and two fertilizer levels (unfertilized and fertilized with 64 kg N ha-1 & 46 kg P2O5 ha-1) in RCBD were experimented for the sustainable use and improved productivity of Vertisols in Northeastern Ethiopia in the 2006/2007 cropping season. Results revealed that ridge and furrow bed (RF) drained more excess water than the broadbed and furrow beds (BBF) and the flatbed (F), but with yield penalties. Soil drainage using broadbed and furrows (BBF) and nitrogen and phosphorus fertilization reduced days to heading and maturity by 12 and 15%, respectively. The broadbed and furrow and the nitrogen and phosphorus fertilization package increased grain yield by 90%, grain nitrogen and phosphorus uptakes by 183 and 252%, and stover nitrogen and phosphorus uptakes by 152 and 121%. Thus, planting in broadbed and furrows (BBF), disregard of the bed size, with fertilizer application is recommended for bread wheat production on vertisols in Northeastern Ethiopia.

Evaluation of Soil Drainage Methods for the Productivity of Waterlogged Vertisols in Jama District, Eastern Amhara Region, Ethiopia

“…e two-year average surface runoff was significantly highest (292.32 mm) in BBF120 and the lowest (255.30 mm) from BBF40. e research finding is in contrast with Mekonen et al [12] who showed the ridge and furrow system drained excess water out of the field due to a large number of furrows constructed on the land that can naturally drain water with a bit provision of furrows. Although the artificial drainage density was relatively higher in BBF40, increased volume of runoff was shown from BBF120.…”

“…Traditionally, surface roughness is created through the tillage/ridge and furrow system which forms microdepressions in which excess water is stored [23][24][25]. Unlike the case of Mekonen et al [12], these large numbers of microdepressions created by the RF method coupled with a flat slope allow water to be stored along the channel instead of draining out. On the contrary, BBF with a large bed size and a small number of furrows could significantly enable the runoff to be drained from relatively large catchment to furrows widely spaced, and it gets the energy to flow out of the plot through powerful concentration on the channels.…”

“…us, water work adversely affects the chemical processes and also the bacterial activities that are essential for the correct growth of a plant [10] cited by Assen et al and Mekonen et al [11,12]. McDonald and Gardner [13] reported that the water table reaches near the root zones of the crops as a result of waterlogging which will cause the soil pores to become fully saturated, the normal circulation of air in the root zones of the crops has stopped, and the growth of the crops decreased.…”