TITLE:
Agro-Economic Implications of Combined Application of Organic and Mineral Fertilizers on Maize
AUTHORS:
Ngoran Eveline Banye, Tabi Oben Fritz, Nguetsop Victor François
KEYWORDS:
Benefit Cost Ratio, Economic Analysis, Maize Yield, Net Benefit, Profitability
JOURNAL NAME:
Agricultural Sciences,
Vol.11 No.7,
July
28,
2020
ABSTRACT: Continuous cultivation without adequate
fertilizer application is responsible for plant nutrient depletion and yield
decline of major food crops in sub-Saharan Africa. Field experiments were conducted
on umbric Cambisol in Babungo and ustic Oxisol in Bansoa in the Western Highlands
of Cameroon over two years to evaluate the effects of combined application of leaf
biomass of agroforestry species and mineral fertilizers with their economic returns
on maize yield performance. Ten treatments encompassing sole mineral fertilizer,
sole leaf biomass of Calliandra, Leucaena, Acacia and Cassia, leaf biomasses combined
with mineral fertilizer and absolute control were laid in a randomized complete
block design and replicated three times. Data collected on maize grain yield was
subjected to analysis of variance using XLSTAT version 2014 statistical software.
In addition, an economic analysis was performed to evaluate the profitability of
the different treatment combinations. The results showed significant differences
(P ≤ 0.05) amongst
the different treatments on maize yield on both soil types. The highest maize yields
which stood at 5.93 t/ha and 6.01 t/ha were recorded in plots treated with Acacia and Cassia plus half recommended mineral fertilizer on umbric Cambisol and
ustic Oxisol respectively. Economic analyses showed that Acacia and Cassia plus half
recommended mineral fertilizer gave the highest net benefit and return to labor
of 286500 FCFA and 5.1 on umbric Cambisol and 296051 FCFA and 5.3 on ustic Oxisol
respectively. On both soils,
all the treatments except Calliandrawith
half recommended mineral fertilizers were economically profitable with benefit to
cost ratios that ranged from 2.02 to 2.92. Combined application of agroforestry tree species leaf
biomass and mineral fertilizers is an appropriate technology to enhance maize grain
yield and is economically profitable except Calliandra with half recommended mineral fertilizers and is therefore recommended for degraded Calliandra and Oxisols
in the Western Highlands of Cameroon.