Géronime Houeto from WASCAL (DecLaRe) will speak about “Agronomic and economic performance of fertilizer microdosing in the shea-maize agroforestry parklands of Benin and Ghana”.
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Agronomic and economic performance of fertilizer microdosing in the shea-maize agroforestry parklands of Benin and Ghana
Maize (Zea mays L.) is a key staple crop in West Africa, but its average yield has stagnated at 2 t ha⁻¹ yr⁻¹, largely due to declining soil fertility and limited use of mineral fertilizers. Blanket fertilizer recommendations (76 kg N, 13.1 kg P, and 24.9 kg K ha-1) have shown limited adoption in the region due to cash constraints. Fertilizer microdosing (MD), which involves applying small amount of fertilizer, offers a potential alternative. This study compared maize yield, labor requirements, and profitability of three fertilizer application methods: no fertilizer (control), MD (17.8 kg N ha-1, 3.1 kg P ha-1, and 5.8 kg K ha-1), and recommended rate (RR) in Vitellaria paradoxa agroforestry parklands in Benin and Ghana. Treatments were applied across four zones: canopy area, 3 m from the canopy, 10 m from the canopy, and 20 m from the canopy, respectively zone A, B, C and D. In both country, there was no significant interaction between zone and fertilizer application. Also, RR grain yields in zone D were 2.2-times higher (p < 0.01) than control yields in Zone A. Profitability of MD and RR was respectively 45% and 116% higher than control. Overall, maize in MD plots had a 219% higher Fertilizer Use Efficiency than in RR plots (p < 0.01). Fertilizer microdosing may thus be a viable entry pathway to intensified production of agroforestry systems for farmers with scarce cash availability.