Combining Tithonia diversifolia and fertilizers for maize production in a phosphorus deficient soil in Kenya

Authors: Nziguheba, G.; Merckx, R.; Palm, C.A.; Mutuo

Source: Agroforestry Systems, Volume 55, Number 3, August 2002 , pp. 165-174(10)

Publisher: Springer

Abstract:

The ability of Tithonia diversifolia, fertilizers and their combination to improve maize production in a P-deficient Ferralsol was studied in western Kenya. Tithonia and fertilizers were applied separately or combined in different proportions to give equal rates of 165 kg N ha⁻¹, 15.5 kg P ha⁻¹ and 155 kg K ha⁻¹ in two consecutive maize growing seasons, followed by two residual maize crops. Maize grain yields and P recovered in the above-ground biomass were higher in the pure Tithonia than the pure fertilizer treatments. Maize yields increased with increasing proportions of Tithonia in the mixed treatments. When less than 36% of the P applied in the mixture was supplied by Tithonia, there was no additional yield benefit in the combined treatments compared to the pure fertilizer treatments. However an added value ranging from 18 to 24% in yield was observed at greater Tithonia proportions. Economic returns were greater when Tithonia was applied alone than when fertilizers were used, with a larger profit when Tithonia was collected from existing niches than when produced on site. Collecting Tithonia from current niches resulted also in larger net returns for all the combined treatments compared to the fertilizer treatments. The results of this study indicate that a high quality organic residue such as Tithonia can increase maize production to a greater extent than fertilizers. In low input systems, the combination of Tithonia and fertilizers is a valuable alternative when resources are scarce and an added benefit can be obtained by maximizing the proportion of Tithonia in the mixture.

Keywords: Economic returns; Green manuring; Maize; Phosphorus recovery; Relative agronomic effectiveness

Document Type: Research article

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1023/A:1020540411245

Affiliations: 1: Email: gn@akad.sun.ac.za

Publication date: 2002-08-01

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