Soil nutrient management strategy required for sustainable and competitive cocoa production in Ghana
Cocoa production on degraded soils in Ghana is less sustainable and less competitive because of increasing plant nutrient depletion and consequent degradation of soil resource base. The need for supplementary plant nutrients has led to current introduction of recommended cocoa fertilizers like Asaase Wura (N:P:K 0:22:18 + 9CaO + 7S + 6 MgO), Cocofeed (N:P:K 0:30:20), Potassium Rich Sidalco Liquid fertilizers (N:P:K 6:0:20 + 1 MgO + trace elements) and Balanced Sidalco Liquid fertilizer (N:P:K 10:10:10 + 1MgO + trace elements)for farmers. For an effective and efficient intervention to the existing problem, there is the need to monitor the levels of degradation of cocoa soils in the different ecological zones and cropping systems. A study was therefore conducted by sampling and analyzing eight hundred soils from four great soil groups covering different areas of the Ghana cocoa belt - Acrisols (75%), Lixisols (10%), Ferralsols (9%) and Nitisol (3%), within four cocoa regions; Eastern, Ashanti, Western and Central. This paper discusses the ratios of the primary and secondary nutrients in addition to their soil reactions, and was compared with the established ratios of nutrient elements in a good cocoa soil. The results showed the need to add calcium and nitrogen to the soils to meet the standard ratio of K: Ca: Mg of 2:17:8, and to augment the low nitrogen to phosphorus ratio in the soils. There is also still the need to search for fertilizer formulations with nitrogen and calcium that will be in the right forms and ratio to suit the nutrient changes recommended for sustainable and competitive cocoa production for the Ghana cocoa belt.
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | conference_item biblioteca |
| Language: | eng |
| Published: |
Cocoa Producers' Alliance
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| Subjects: | F04 - Fertilisation, P35 - Fertilité du sol, |
| Online Access: | http://agritrop.cirad.fr/554227/ http://agritrop.cirad.fr/554227/1/document_554227.pdf |
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| Summary: | Cocoa production on degraded soils in Ghana is less sustainable and less competitive because of increasing plant nutrient depletion and consequent degradation of soil resource base. The need for supplementary plant nutrients has led to current introduction of recommended cocoa fertilizers like Asaase Wura (N:P:K 0:22:18 + 9CaO + 7S + 6 MgO), Cocofeed (N:P:K 0:30:20), Potassium Rich Sidalco Liquid fertilizers (N:P:K 6:0:20 + 1 MgO + trace elements) and Balanced Sidalco Liquid fertilizer (N:P:K 10:10:10 + 1MgO + trace elements)for farmers. For an effective and efficient intervention to the existing problem, there is the need to monitor the levels of degradation of cocoa soils in the different ecological zones and cropping systems. A study was therefore conducted by sampling and analyzing eight hundred soils from four great soil groups covering different areas of the Ghana cocoa belt - Acrisols (75%), Lixisols (10%), Ferralsols (9%) and Nitisol (3%), within four cocoa regions; Eastern, Ashanti, Western and Central. This paper discusses the ratios of the primary and secondary nutrients in addition to their soil reactions, and was compared with the established ratios of nutrient elements in a good cocoa soil. The results showed the need to add calcium and nitrogen to the soils to meet the standard ratio of K: Ca: Mg of 2:17:8, and to augment the low nitrogen to phosphorus ratio in the soils. There is also still the need to search for fertilizer formulations with nitrogen and calcium that will be in the right forms and ratio to suit the nutrient changes recommended for sustainable and competitive cocoa production for the Ghana cocoa belt. |
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