Abstract
The Intensification of cowpea production is a priority because of its role in household income generation and its contribution to food security. To evaluate the effect of organic fertilizers on cowpea productivity, a dispersed block experiment design was set up in Saria in the semi-arid zone of Burkina Faso during the 2017 and 2018 cropping seasons. The combination of Biodeposit (Agro and Elixir) and Organova were used alone or in combination with mineral fertilizer. The results showed that during the two years, the highest cowpea grain yields were obtained with the Organova + the recommended mineral fertilizer and Biodeposit Agro + the recommended mineral fertilizer. The combination of organic fertilizers and recommended mineral fertilizer resulted in a 45% and 59% increase respectively with Organova and Biodeposit (Agro + Elixir). These two fertilizers then have the same effects on cowpea productivity. In the semi-arid zone where there is competition for organic resources, organic fertilizers can be used in combination with mineral fertilizer to improve cowpea productivity.
Highlights
Cowpea is a strategic crop in Burkina Faso
In 2017, the highest cowpea grain yields were obtained with Organova + recommended Mineral Fertilizer treatment and Biodeposit (Agro + Elixir) + recommended mineral fertilizer treatments with 976.56 kg ha-1 and 965.71 kg ha-1 respectively
The combination of organic fertilizers with the recommended mineral fertilizer resulted in an increase of 45.16% and 58.93% with Organova and Biodeposit (Agro + Elixir), respectively
Summary
Cowpea is a strategic crop in Burkina Faso. It is an important source of income for households and contributes to food security (Oke & Eyitayo, 2010). The national production of cowpea stagnates with 555 833 tons produced in 2017 (INSD, 2018), despite an increase in cowpea production lands by 146% (INSD, 2018) and the adoption of new and more productive cowpea varieties. This small increase in productivity is due to pests’ pressures but especially to low soil fertility. This has been already observed by Lahmar et al (2011), Bationo et al (2012), Omotoso (2014), and Bationo and Fening (2018) who noted that the majority of cultivated soils in sub-Saharan Africa have low yields because of their low inherent soil fertility and land degradation
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