Abstract:
The decline in soil fertility is a fundamental impediment to agricultural
growth and a major reason for food insecurity in Sub-Saharan Africa. This
study aimed to identify the best management practice applicable to
organic manures (OM) and inorganic fertilizers (IF) for sustainable
production. It was conducted in 2018-2019 in Burkina Faso using a
Randomized Complete Block Design with six treatments in three
replications. The applied treatments were: T1 (control); T2 (simple
compost), T3 (Piliostigma reticulatum leaves compost), T4 (T2 + ½ IF),
T5 (T3 + ½ IF) and T6 (IF). The effects of these treatments were
evaluated on soil properties (C, N, P, K) and sorghum grain yield using
XLSTAT version 2014.5.03 software. The results showed that the
incorporation of O Min soil increased significantly soil pH and its
properties. The combined application of OM with IF decreased soil
properties but it contributed to increase significantly sorghum yield
specifically under the combined application of simple compost with IF.
Under an exclusive use of IF and the control plot, soil C decreased with
consequent decline in soil pH and nutrients content. Also, under the
combined incorporation of P. reticulatum compost with IF, sorghum yield
decreased. Therefore, appropriate application of inorganic and organic
fertilizers is needed to increase soil organic matter and maintain its
productivity
