Nitrogen budgets and nitrogen use efficiency as agricultural performance indicators in Lake Victoria basin
Too little nitrogen (N) is a threat to crop productivity and soil fertility in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Nitrogen budgets (NB) and nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) are critical tools for assessing N dynamics in agriculture and have received little or no attention in the region. Data were collected from...
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2022-10-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fsufs.2022.1023579/full |
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| author | Winnie Ntinyari Winnie Ntinyari Joseph Gweyi-Onyango Mekonnen Giweta James Mutegi Benson Mochoge Generose Nziguheba Cargele Masso |
| author_facet | Winnie Ntinyari Winnie Ntinyari Joseph Gweyi-Onyango Mekonnen Giweta James Mutegi Benson Mochoge Generose Nziguheba Cargele Masso |
| author_sort | Winnie Ntinyari |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Too little nitrogen (N) is a threat to crop productivity and soil fertility in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Nitrogen budgets (NB) and nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) are critical tools for assessing N dynamics in agriculture and have received little or no attention in the region. Data were collected from smallholder farmers clustered into two categories, farmers applying and farmers not applying N fertilizers. NB were calculated using the Coupled Human and Natural Systems (CHANS) model approach for field and farm spatial scales. The results showed spatial variabilities in NB and NUE at the field level (maize and rice) across all the catchments. At the field level, N balances were negative for the two crops in all the catchments. Similarly, at the farm gate, a deficit of −78.37 kg N ha−1 was observed, an indicator of soil N mining. NUE values at the field scale varied across the catchments for both crops, with values for maize grown without N ranging from 25.76 to 140.18%. Even with the application of mineral N at higher levels in rice fields compared to maize fields, NUE values ranged between 81.92 and 224.6%. Our study revealed that the Lake Victoria region suffers from inefficient N cycling due to depleted soil N pools and low synchrony between N input and N removal. Therefore, a challenge lies in exploiting more sustainable N sources for farmers in the region for sustainable farming systems. The NB and NUE provide critical information to agriculture stakeholders to develop environmental, agronomic, and economically viable N management solutions. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-11T08:41:05Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-66ec2f5645064e018ea3b2b6c592a954 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2571-581X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-11T08:41:05Z |
| publishDate | 2022-10-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems |
| spelling | doaj.art-66ec2f5645064e018ea3b2b6c592a9542022-12-22T04:34:12ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems2571-581X2022-10-01610.3389/fsufs.2022.10235791023579Nitrogen budgets and nitrogen use efficiency as agricultural performance indicators in Lake Victoria basinWinnie Ntinyari0Winnie Ntinyari1Joseph Gweyi-Onyango2Mekonnen Giweta3James Mutegi4Benson Mochoge5Generose Nziguheba6Cargele Masso7International Institute of Tropical Agriculture, C/O ICIPE, Nairobi, KenyaDepartment of Agricultural Science and Technology, Kenyatta University, Nairobi, KenyaDepartment of Agricultural Science and Technology, Kenyatta University, Nairobi, KenyaInternational Institute of Tropical Agriculture Cameroon, Eco-regional Center HFS, Yaoundé, CameroonAfrican Plant Nutrition Institute, C/O IFDC, ICIPE Compound, Nairobi, KenyaDepartment of Agricultural Science and Technology, Kenyatta University, Nairobi, KenyaInternational Institute of Tropical Agriculture, C/O ICIPE, Nairobi, KenyaInternational Institute of Tropical Agriculture Cameroon, Eco-regional Center HFS, Yaoundé, CameroonToo little nitrogen (N) is a threat to crop productivity and soil fertility in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Nitrogen budgets (NB) and nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) are critical tools for assessing N dynamics in agriculture and have received little or no attention in the region. Data were collected from smallholder farmers clustered into two categories, farmers applying and farmers not applying N fertilizers. NB were calculated using the Coupled Human and Natural Systems (CHANS) model approach for field and farm spatial scales. The results showed spatial variabilities in NB and NUE at the field level (maize and rice) across all the catchments. At the field level, N balances were negative for the two crops in all the catchments. Similarly, at the farm gate, a deficit of −78.37 kg N ha−1 was observed, an indicator of soil N mining. NUE values at the field scale varied across the catchments for both crops, with values for maize grown without N ranging from 25.76 to 140.18%. Even with the application of mineral N at higher levels in rice fields compared to maize fields, NUE values ranged between 81.92 and 224.6%. Our study revealed that the Lake Victoria region suffers from inefficient N cycling due to depleted soil N pools and low synchrony between N input and N removal. Therefore, a challenge lies in exploiting more sustainable N sources for farmers in the region for sustainable farming systems. The NB and NUE provide critical information to agriculture stakeholders to develop environmental, agronomic, and economically viable N management solutions.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fsufs.2022.1023579/fullcropping systemmineral fertilizerN lossesN managementsoil depletion |
| spellingShingle | Winnie Ntinyari Winnie Ntinyari Joseph Gweyi-Onyango Mekonnen Giweta James Mutegi Benson Mochoge Generose Nziguheba Cargele Masso Nitrogen budgets and nitrogen use efficiency as agricultural performance indicators in Lake Victoria basin Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems cropping system mineral fertilizer N losses N management soil depletion |
| title | Nitrogen budgets and nitrogen use efficiency as agricultural performance indicators in Lake Victoria basin |
| title_full | Nitrogen budgets and nitrogen use efficiency as agricultural performance indicators in Lake Victoria basin |
| title_fullStr | Nitrogen budgets and nitrogen use efficiency as agricultural performance indicators in Lake Victoria basin |
| title_full_unstemmed | Nitrogen budgets and nitrogen use efficiency as agricultural performance indicators in Lake Victoria basin |
| title_short | Nitrogen budgets and nitrogen use efficiency as agricultural performance indicators in Lake Victoria basin |
| title_sort | nitrogen budgets and nitrogen use efficiency as agricultural performance indicators in lake victoria basin |
| topic | cropping system mineral fertilizer N losses N management soil depletion |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fsufs.2022.1023579/full |
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