Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-lnqnp Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-26T18:31:13.089Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Effects of maize residue and mineral nitrogen applications on maize yield in conservation-agriculture-based cropping systems of Southern Africa

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 January 2019

W. Mupangwa ,
C. Thierfelder ,
S. Cheesman ,
I. Nyagumbo ,
T. Muoni ,
B. Mhlanga ,
M. Mwila ,
T. S. Sida  and
A. Ngwira
W. Mupangwa*
Affiliation:
International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre, ILRI Sholla Campus, P O Box 5689, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
C. Thierfelder
Affiliation:
International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre, P.O. Box MP 163, Mount Pleasant, Harare, Zimbabwe
S. Cheesman
Affiliation:
International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre, P.O. Box MP 163, Mount Pleasant, Harare, Zimbabwe Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, P.O. Box 8016, Windhoek, Namibia
I. Nyagumbo
Affiliation:
International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre, P.O. Box MP 163, Mount Pleasant, Harare, Zimbabwe
T. Muoni
Affiliation:
International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre, P.O. Box MP 163, Mount Pleasant, Harare, Zimbabwe University of Zimbabwe, P.O. Box MP 167, Mount Pleasant, Harare, Zimbabwe
B. Mhlanga
Affiliation:
International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre, P.O. Box MP 163, Mount Pleasant, Harare, Zimbabwe
M. Mwila
Affiliation:
Zambia Agriculture Research Institute, Msekera Research Station, P.O. Box 510089, Chipata, Zambia
T. S. Sida
Affiliation:
International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre, ILRI Sholla Campus, P O Box 5689, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
A. Ngwira
Affiliation:
International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics, Chitedze Research Station, P.O. Box 1096, Lilongwe, Malawi
*
Author for correspondence: W. Mupangwa, E-mail: [email protected]; [email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Conservation agriculture (CA) and no-till (NT)-based cropping systems could address soil degradation and fertility decline in southern Africa. A multi-location and multi-year experiment was carried out between 2008 and 2014 to assess the effects of different levels of maize residue biomass (0, 2, 4, 6 and 8 t ha−1) and nitrogen (N) fertilizer (0, 30, 90 kg ha−1) on maize performance under no-tillage. In some sites, different (N) fertilizer levels were superimposed to test their effects on maize grain yield and leaf chlorophyll content under different maize residue biomass levels. The different residue levels had no significant effect on maize yield in most growing seasons. Maize residue cover increased grain yield in eight out of 39 site-years across the sites used. However, in some sites, maize yield decreased with increases in residue level in cropping seasons that had average to above average rainfall. At a few sites maize yield increased with increase in residue level. Seasonal rainfall pattern influenced the effect of different residue levels on grain yield at most sites. Nitrogen fertilizer increased maize yield regardless of the residue level applied. This study demonstrates that mulching with maize residues in CA/NT systems results in limited maize yield gains – at least within the first 6 years in different agro-ecological conditions of southern Africa.

Keywords

Chlorophyllcrop–livestock interactionimmobilizationresidue retentionsustainable intensification
Type
Research Paper
Information
Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems , Volume 35 , Issue 3 , June 2020 , pp. 322 - 335
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2019

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Andersson, JA and D'Souza, S (2014) From adoption claims to understanding farmers and contexts: a literature review of Conservation Agriculture (CA) adoption among smallholder farmers in Southern Africa. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment 187, 116–132.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Barrios, E, Kwesiga, F, Buresh, RJ and Sprent, JI (1997) Light fraction soil organic matter and available nitrogen following trees and maize. Soil Science Society of America Journal 61, 826–831.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Berg, G and Smalla, K (2009) Plant species and soil type cooperatively shape the structure and function of microbial communities in the rhizosphere. FEMS Microbiology Ecology 68, 1–13.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Blackmer, TM and Schepers, JS (1996) Use of chlorophyll meter to monitor nitrogen status and schedule fertigation for corn. Production Agriculture 8, 56–60.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Corbeels, M, Sakyi, RK, Kühne, RF and Whitbread, A (2014) Meta-analysis of crop responses to conservation agriculture in sub-Saharan Africa (CCAFS Report No. 12). Copenhagen: CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS). Available at www.ccafs.cgiar.org.Google Scholar
Duncan, AJ, Tarawali, SA, Thorne, PJ, Valbuena, D, Descheemaeker, K and Homann-Kee, S (2013) Integrated crop/livestock systems – a key to sustainable intensification in Africa. Tropical Grass 1, 202–206.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
FAO (2002) Conservation agriculture: Case study in Latin America and Africa. 78 Rome: FAO Soils Bulletin.Google Scholar
FAO (2015) Conservation Agriculture. Available at http://www.fao.org/ag/ca/index.htmlGoogle Scholar
Gentile, R, Vanlauwe, B, Van Kessel, C and Six, J (2009) Managing N availability and losses by combining fertilizer N with different quality residues in Kenya. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment 131, 308–314.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Giller, KE, Cadisch, G, Ehaliotis, C, Adams, E, Sakala, W and Mafongoya, PL (1997) Building soil nitrogen capital in Africa. In Buresh, JR, Sanchez, PA and Calhoun, F (eds), Replenishing Soil Fertility in Africa. Madison, Wisconsin, USA: Soil Science Society of America Special Publication No 51, pp. 151–192.Google Scholar
Giller, KE, Witter, E, Corbeels, M and Tittonell, P (2009) Conservation agriculture and smallholder farming in Africa: the heretic's view. Field Crops Research 114, 23–34.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Girvan, MS, Bullimore, J, Pretty, JN, Osborne, AM and Ball, AS (2003) Soil type is the primary determinant of the composition of the total and active bacterial communities in arable soils. Applied and Environmental Microbiology 69, 1800–1809.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Habig, J and Swanepoel, C (2015) Effects of conservation agriculture and fertilization on soil microbial diversity and activity. Environments 2, 358–384.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hadas, A, Kautsky, L, Goek, M and Kara, EE (2004) Rates of decomposition of plant residues and available nitrogen in soil, related to residue composition through simulation of carbon and nitrogen turnover. Soil Biology & Biochemistry 36, 255–266.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hlatywayo, R, Mhlanga, B, Mazarura, U, Mupangwa, W and Thierfelder, C (2016) Response of maize (Zea mays L.) secondary growth parameters to conservation agriculture and conventional tillage systems in Zimbabwe. Agricultural Science 8, 112–126.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Homann Kee-Tui, S, Bandason, E, Maute, F, Nkomboni, D, Mpofu, N, Tanganyika, J, Van Rooyen, AF, Gondwe, T, Dias, P, Ncube, S, Moyo, S, Hendricks, S and Nisrane, F (2013) Optimizing livelihood and environmental benefits from crop residues in smallholder crop-livestock systems in Southern Africa: Crop residue uses and trade- offs, exploring options for sustainable intensification with stakeholders. International Crops Research Institute for Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), Patancheru, AP, India, 60 pp.Google Scholar
Jaleta, M, Kassie, M and Erenstein, O (2015) Determinants of maize stover utilization as feed, fuel and soil amendment in mixed crop-livestock systems, Ethiopia. Agricultural Systems 134, 17–23.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jat, ML, Gathala, MK, Saharawat, YS, Tetarwal, JP, Gupta, R and Yadvinder, S (2013) Double no-till and permanent raised beds in maize–wheat rotation of north-western Indo- Gangetic plains of India: effects on crop yields, water productivity, profitability and soil physical properties. Field Crops Research 149, 291–299.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jayne, TS, Mather, D and Mghenyi, E (2010) Principal challenges confronting smallholder agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa. World Development 38, 1384–1398.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kassam, A, Friedrich, T, Shaxson, F and Pretty, J (2009) The spread of conservation agriculture: justification, sustainability and uptake. International Journal of Agricultural Sustainability 7, 292–320.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kitonyo, OM, Sadras, VO, Zhou, Y and Debton, MD (2018) Nitrogen fertilization modifies maize yield response to tillage and stubble in a sub-humid tropical environment. Field Crops Research 223, 113–124.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kumwenda, JDT, Saka, AR, Snap, SS, Ganunga, RP and Benson, T (1998) Effects of organic legume residues and inorganic fertilizer nitrogen on maize yield in Malawi. In Waddington, S, Murwira, HK, Kumwenda, JDT, Hikwa, D and Tagwira, F (eds), Soil Fertility Research for Maize Based Farming Systems in Malawi and Zimbabwe. Proceedings of the Soil Fertility Research Results and Planning Workshop. 7–11 July 1997, Mutare, Zimbabwe: Africa University, pp. 165–171.Google Scholar
Lal, R (2015) Sequestering carbon and increasing productivity by conservation agriculture. Journal of Soil and Water Conservation 70, 55–62.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lemaire, G, Charrier, X and Hebert, Y (1996) Nitrogen uptake capacities of maize and sorghum crops in different nitrogen and water supply conditions. Agron 16, 231–246.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Liu, K and Wiatrak, P (2011) Corn (Zea mays L.) plant characteristics and grain yield response to N fertilization programs in no-till system. American Journal of Agricultural and Biological Sciences 6, 279–286.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mapfumo, P, Mtambanengwe, F and Vanlauwe, B (2007) Organic matter quality and management effects on enrichment of soil organic matter fractions in contrasting soils in Zimbabwe. Plant and Soil 296, 137–150.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Martinsen, V, Shitumbanuma, V, Mulder, J, Ritz, C and Cornelissen, G (2017) Effects of hand hoe tilled conservation farming on soil quality and carbon stocks under on-farm conditions in Zambia. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment 241, 168–178.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Masvaya, EN, Nyamangara, J, Descheemaeker, K and Giller, KE (2017) Is maize-cowpea intercropping a viable option for smallholder farms in the risky environments of semi-arid Southern Africa? Field Crops Research 209, 73–87.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Matusso, JM, Mugwe, J and Mucheru-Muna, M (2015) Effects of different maize (Zea mays L.) soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merrill) intercropping patterns on soil mineral-N, N-uptake and soil properties. African Journal of. Agricultural Research 9, 42–55.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mazvimavi, K and Twomlow, S (2009) Socioeconomic and institutional factors influencing adoption of conservation agriculture by vulnerable households in Zimbabwe. Agricultural Systems 101, 20–29.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mhlanga, B (2015) Evaluation of the effects of relay cropping and rotation on supplementary biomass production and its retention in maize-based systems under conservation agriculture in Zimbabwe. Department of Crop Science, University of Zimbabwe.Google Scholar
Mloza-Banda, HR, Makwiza, CN and Mloza-Banda, ML (2016) Soil properties after conversion to conservation agriculture from ridge tillage in southern Malawi. Journal of Arid Environments 127, 7–16.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Muchabi, J, Lungu, OI and Mweetwa, AM (2014) Conservation agriculture in Zambia: effects on selected soil properties and biological nitrogen fixation in soybeans (Glycine max (l.) Merr). Sustainable Agriculture Research 3, 28–36.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Muchow, RC (1988) Effect of nitrogen supply on the comparative productivity of maize and Sorghum in a semi-arid tropical environment I. Leaf growth and leaf nitrogen. Field Crops Research 18, 1–16.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Muchow, RC and Davis, R (1988) Effect of N supply on the comparative productivity of maize and sorghum in a semi-arid tropical environment II. Radiation interception and biomass accumulation. Field Crops Research 18, 17–30.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mupangwa, W and Thierfelder, C (2014) Intensification of conservation agriculture systems for increased livestock feed and maize production in Zimbabwe. International Journal of Agricultural Sustainability 12, 425–439.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mupangwa, W, Twomlow, S and Walker, S (2012) Reduced tillage, mulching and rotational effects on maize (Zea mays L.), cowpea (Vigna unguiculata (Walp) L.) and sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L. (Moench)) yields under semi-arid conditions. Field Crops Research 132, 139–148.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mupangwa, W, Twomlow, S, Walker, S and Hove, L (2007) Effect of minimum tillage and mulching on maize (Zea mays L.) yield and water content of clayey and sandy soils. Physics and Chemistry of the Earth 32, 1127–1134.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mupangwa, W, Nyagumbo, I and Mutsamba, E (2016 a) Effect of different mulching materials on maize growth and yield in conservation agriculture systems of sub-humid Zimbabwe. AIMS Agriculture and Food 1, 239–253.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mupangwa, W, Mutenje, M, Thierfelder, C and Nyagumbo, I (2016 b) Are conservation agriculture (CA) systems productive and profitable options for smallholder farmers in different agro- ecoregions of Zimbabwe? Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems 32, 87–103.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ngwira, AR, Thierfelder, C and Lambert, DM (2012) Conservation agriculture systems for Malawian smallholder farmers: long-term effects on crop productivity, profitability and soil quality. Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems 28, 350–363.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nyagumbo, I, Munamati, M, Mutsamba, EF, Thierfelder, C, Cumbane, A and Dias, D (2015) The effects of tillage, mulching and termite control strategies on termite activity and maize yield under conservation agriculture in Mozambique. Crop Protection 78, 54–62.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nyamangara, J, Masvaya, EN, Tirivavi, R and Nyengerai, K (2013) Effect of hand-hoe based conservation agriculture on soil fertility and maize yield in selected smallholder areas in Zimbabwe. Soil & Tillage Research 126, 19–25.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nyamangara, J, Marondedze, A, Masvaya, EN, Mawodza, T, Nyawasha, R, Nyengerai, K, Tirivavi, R, Nyamugafata, P and Wuta, M (2014) Influence of basin-based conservation agriculture on selected soil quality parameters under smallholder farming in Zimbabwe. Soil Use and Management 30, 550–559.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nyamapfene, K (1991) Soils of Zimbabwe. Harare, Zimbabwe: Nehanda Publishers (Pvt) Ltd.Google Scholar
Palm, C, Blanco-Canqui, H, Declerck, F, Gatere, L and Grace, P (2014) Conservation agriculture and ecosystem services: an overview. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment 187, 87–105.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pandey, RK, Maranville, JW and Chetima, MM (2000) Deficit irrigation and nitrogen effects on maize in a Sahelian environment II. Shoot growth, nitrogen uptake and water extraction. Agricultural Water Management 46, 15–27.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Payne, R, Murray, D, Harding, S, Baird, D, Soutar, D and Lane, P (2002) GenStat for Windows, 6th Edn.Jordan Hill Road, Oxford, UK: VSN International, Wilkson House.Google Scholar
Pittelkow, CM, Liang, X, Linquist, BA, Van Groenigen, KJ, Lee, J, Lundy, ME, Van Gestel, N, Six, J, Venterea, RT and Van Kessel, C (2014) Productivity limits and potentials of the principles of conservation agriculture. Res letter. Nature 517, 365–368.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pittelkow, CM, Linquist, BA, Lundy, ME, Liang, X, van Groenigen, KJ, Lee, J, van Gestel, N, Six, J, Venterea, RT and van Kessel, C (2015) When does no-till yield more? A global meta-analysis. Field Crops Research 183, 156–168.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
R Core Team (2017) R: A Language and Environment for Statistical Computing. Vienna, Austria: R Foundation for Statistical Computing. Available at http://www.R-project.org/.Google Scholar
Rusinamhodzi, L, Corbeels, M, van Wijk, MT, Rufino, MC, Nyamangara, J and Giller, KE (2011) A meta-analysis of long-term effects of conservation agriculture on maize grain yield under rain-fed conditions. Agronomy for Sustainable Development 31, 657–673.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rusinamhodzi, L, Corbeels, M, Zingore, S, Nyamangara, J and Giller, KE (2013) Pushing the envelope? Maize production intensification and the role of cattle manure in recovery of degraded soils in smallholder farming areas of Zimbabwe. Field Crops Research 147, 40–53.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sakala, WD, Cadisch, G and Giller, KE (2000) Interactions between residues of maize and pigeon pea and mineral N fertilizers during decomposition and N mineralization. Soil Biology & Biochemistry 32, 679–688.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thierfelder, C and Wall, PC (2010) Rotations in conservation agriculture systems of Zambia: effects on soil quality and water relations. Experimental Agriculture 46, 309–325.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thierfelder, C, Mutenje, M, Mujeyi, A and Mupangwa, W (2014) Where is the limit? Lessons learned from long term conservation agriculture research in zimuto communal area, Zimbabwe. Food Security 7, 15–31.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thierfelder, C, Rusinamhodzi, L, Ngwira, AR, Mupangwa, W, Nyagumbo, I, Kassie, GT and Cairns, JE (2015) Conservation agriculture in Southern Africa: advances in knowledge. Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems 30, 328–348.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Twomlow, SJ, Steyn, JT and Du Preez, CC (2006) Dryland farming in Southern Africa. Chapter 19. In Petersen, GA, Unger, WP, Payne, WA (eds), Dryland Agriculture, 2nd Edn. Agronomy Monograph No. 23. Madison, Wisconsin: American Society of Agronomy, pp. 769–836.Google Scholar
Valbuena, D, Erenstein, O, Homann-Kee Tui, S, Abdoulaye, T, Claessens, L, Duncan, AJ, Gérard, B, Rufino, MC, Teufel, N, van Rooyen, A and van Wijk, MT (2012) Conservation agriculture in mixed crop–livestock systems: scoping crop residue trade-offs in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. Field Crops Research 132, 175–184.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Verhulst, N, Govaerts, B, Verachtert, E, Castellanos-Navarrete, A, Mezzalama, M, Wall, PC, Chocobar, A, Deckers, J and Sayre, KD (2010) Conservation agriculture, improving soil quality for sustainable production systems. In Lal, R and Stewart, BA (eds), Advances in Soil Science: Food Security and Soil Quality. Boca Raton, FL, USA: CRC Press, pp. 137–208.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wall, PC, Thierfelder, C, Ngwira, A, Govaerts, B, Nyagumbo, I and Baudron, F (2013) Conservation agriculture in eastern and Southern Africa. In Jat, RA, Sahrawat, KL and Kassam, AH (eds), Conservation Agriculture: Global Prospects and Challenges. Wallingford Oxfordshire OX10 8DE, UK: CABI, pp. 263–292.Google Scholar
Wood, CW, Reeves, DW and Himelrick, DG (1993) Relationships between chlorophyll meter readings and leaf chlorophyll concentration, N status and crop yield : a review. Proceedings of the Agronomy Society of New Zealand 23, 1–9.Google Scholar
Supplementary material: File

Mupangwa et al. supplementary material

Tables S1-S6 and Plate S1

Download Mupangwa et al. supplementary material(File)
File 158.5 KB