Options for soil organic carbon maintenance under intensive cropping in the West African savanna

Data from the derived savanna zone in southern Benin indicated that some intensive cropping systems (maize/Cajanus and maize/Mucuna relays; maize/cotton with Senna siamea hedgerows) returned about 12 Mg DM ha-1 year-1 of plant biomass to the soil. This compared favorably with the 8 Mg DM ha-1 year-1...

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Main Authors: Diels, J., Lyasse, O., Sanginga, N., Vanlauwe, Bernard, Aihou, K., Iwuafor, E.N.O., Merckx, Roel, Deckers, J.
Format: Book Chapter
Language:Inglés
Published: 2002
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/99995
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author Diels, J.
Lyasse, O.
Sanginga, N.
Vanlauwe, Bernard
Aihou, K.
Iwuafor, E.N.O.
Merckx, Roel
Deckers, J.
author_browse Aihou, K.
Deckers, J.
Diels, J.
Iwuafor, E.N.O.
Lyasse, O.
Merckx, Roel
Sanginga, N.
Vanlauwe, Bernard
author_facet Diels, J.
Lyasse, O.
Sanginga, N.
Vanlauwe, Bernard
Aihou, K.
Iwuafor, E.N.O.
Merckx, Roel
Deckers, J.
author_sort Diels, J.
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description Data from the derived savanna zone in southern Benin indicated that some intensive cropping systems (maize/Cajanus and maize/Mucuna relays; maize/cotton with Senna siamea hedgerows) returned about 12 Mg DM ha-1 year-1 of plant biomass to the soil. This compared favorably with the 8 Mg DM ha-1 year-1 reported for current maize/cotton and maize/cowpea systems. Based on calculations with the Rothamsted carbon model, this extra biomass translates into an increase in the topsoil carbon content of 0.33% C after 20 years. These calculations were found to be in line with available data from long-term experiments in West Africa. While the relation between residue-input rates and soil organic carbon (SOC) buildup is reasonably well known, little is known about how this translates directly into yield benefits. As a way to identify the potential of such benefits, we translated achievable SOC gains into increases in top-soil CEC, pH-buffer capacity, and available water (AW) in the soil profile in relative terms, i.e. relative to the AW without additional SOC buildup, and relative to the CEC and pH-buffer capacity contributed by the mineral soil constituents. This indicated that achievable increases in AW from higher SOC contents are insignificant. Furthermore, we found that increases in CEC and pH-buffer capacity through SOC buildup can be justified only in a limited number of soils where the mineral fraction in the topsoil provides very little buffering. Finally, we used a response-curve approach to single out the various benefits from organic matter inputs and to look at interactions with mineral fertilizers. We also indicated the scope for a more mechanistic interpretation, focusing on the effect of increased pH buffering as a way to minimize losses from NH3 volatilization with urea applications in poorly buffered soils.
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spelling CGSpace999952024-03-06T10:16:43Z Options for soil organic carbon maintenance under intensive cropping in the West African savanna Diels, J. Lyasse, O. Sanginga, N. Vanlauwe, Bernard Aihou, K. Iwuafor, E.N.O. Merckx, Roel Deckers, J. biomass mucuna pruriens cowpeas cajanus cajan weeds maize cotton fertilizers organic matter Data from the derived savanna zone in southern Benin indicated that some intensive cropping systems (maize/Cajanus and maize/Mucuna relays; maize/cotton with Senna siamea hedgerows) returned about 12 Mg DM ha-1 year-1 of plant biomass to the soil. This compared favorably with the 8 Mg DM ha-1 year-1 reported for current maize/cotton and maize/cowpea systems. Based on calculations with the Rothamsted carbon model, this extra biomass translates into an increase in the topsoil carbon content of 0.33% C after 20 years. These calculations were found to be in line with available data from long-term experiments in West Africa. While the relation between residue-input rates and soil organic carbon (SOC) buildup is reasonably well known, little is known about how this translates directly into yield benefits. As a way to identify the potential of such benefits, we translated achievable SOC gains into increases in top-soil CEC, pH-buffer capacity, and available water (AW) in the soil profile in relative terms, i.e. relative to the AW without additional SOC buildup, and relative to the CEC and pH-buffer capacity contributed by the mineral soil constituents. This indicated that achievable increases in AW from higher SOC contents are insignificant. Furthermore, we found that increases in CEC and pH-buffer capacity through SOC buildup can be justified only in a limited number of soils where the mineral fraction in the topsoil provides very little buffering. Finally, we used a response-curve approach to single out the various benefits from organic matter inputs and to look at interactions with mineral fertilizers. We also indicated the scope for a more mechanistic interpretation, focusing on the effect of increased pH buffering as a way to minimize losses from NH3 volatilization with urea applications in poorly buffered soils. 2002 2019-03-03T05:54:35Z 2019-03-03T05:54:35Z Book Chapter https://hdl.handle.net/10568/99995 en Open Access application/pdf Diels, J., Lyasse, O., Sanginga, N., Vanlauwe, B., Aihou, K., Iwuafor, E.N.O., ... & Deckers, J. (2003). Options for soil organic Carbon maintenance under intensive cropping in the West-African Savanna. In Management of crop residues for sustainable crop production. Vienna, Austria, International Atomic Energy Agency. (p. 99-110).
spellingShingle biomass
mucuna pruriens
cowpeas
cajanus cajan
weeds
maize
cotton
fertilizers
organic matter
Diels, J.
Lyasse, O.
Sanginga, N.
Vanlauwe, Bernard
Aihou, K.
Iwuafor, E.N.O.
Merckx, Roel
Deckers, J.
Options for soil organic carbon maintenance under intensive cropping in the West African savanna
title Options for soil organic carbon maintenance under intensive cropping in the West African savanna
title_full Options for soil organic carbon maintenance under intensive cropping in the West African savanna
title_fullStr Options for soil organic carbon maintenance under intensive cropping in the West African savanna
title_full_unstemmed Options for soil organic carbon maintenance under intensive cropping in the West African savanna
title_short Options for soil organic carbon maintenance under intensive cropping in the West African savanna
title_sort options for soil organic carbon maintenance under intensive cropping in the west african savanna
topic biomass
mucuna pruriens
cowpeas
cajanus cajan
weeds
maize
cotton
fertilizers
organic matter
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/99995
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